Out There
by Luci17
Summary: Following Season 4 (Season 4 SPOILERS) , Chloe tries to figure out how to deal with Lucifer being gone. They find their way to each other, but not in a way either of them imagined. I hope you enjoy - please leave comments! It's my first fan fic, but even before I had finished S4, I knew I had to write something to deal with the turmoil we were all left in!
1. Chapter 1

The feeling had come on like a sickness – ice cold spread through her body as she stood alone on the balcony of the penthouse, staring aimlessly into the darkness. The million pinpoints of lights of Los Angeles usually captivated her, but tonight everything seemed bleak and empty. Chloe felt a chill continue through her body, despite the warm south California night. She had never felt so tired or spent, maybe when she'd have birth to Trixie or when she'd been poisoned, but that had all been a blur. In a way, this was too. She'd said the words "I love you," her heart beating madly because she was so scared to say them out loud. A year ago, she would have said it and her biggest worry would have been if Lucifer would stick around, would he get bored, what would people think? He could be selfish and thoughtless and she often thought he saved the best parts of him to show to her. She had to really be paying attention sometimes, but the goodness was always there.

After she saw his true face, the world seemed so much smaller. People who didn't know about heaven and hell seemed so clueless and oblivious. Part of her longed for those days when she was one of those ignorant people, occupying their minds with grocery lists and family vacations and upcoming job performance reviews for some mundane occupation. But heaven and hell existed. The true battle between good and evil. And she'd been amongst these celestial beings for years – angels and demons…the devil. Talk about clueless.

Chloe had been through every emotion, rational and irrational and thought since that fateful day when she'd seen Lucifer's true self. What he really was, or so she thought. She never imagined she'd ever see him again like the old Lucifer she knew before. It had taken her so long to reconcile those two faces – one so beautiful and perfect, the other terrifying and unworldly. But everything he had told her over their time together had been the truth. Damn right he was scarier and rawer in his other form, but when she told him she loved him, she could honestly admit she accepted both sides of him, because there really was only one. It was like seeing two separate piece that didn't really make sense until they were put together.

Chloe blinked, remembering where she was. She reluctantly turned away from the balcony because she knew he wasn't coming back. He'd said goodbye twice – one meant for her and she thinks the second goodbye was to make it real to himself, so he would go through with it. She surveyed his trashed penthouse. She felt like how it looked – disarray, chaos, broken. Her body ached. She was so tired. She momentarily considered laying on his couch – where she and Maze had roused him from sleep just hours earlier, but she couldn't stay a moment longer. The emptiness of him not being there with her anymore was too much for her heart to take. She walked to the elevator, stopping, wondering if she should take something of his to hold onto – a dress shirt that she had admired him in or one of the fancy, cut-glass liquor bottles that he drank out of so often – she knew he wouldn't care. But it felt like removing a belonging of someone who had died. Besides, she didn't need any reminders – the man was everywhere – in her heart and head, on her lips and skin. His presence was a tattoo, a permanent and constant reminder of his absence. Chloe stepped into the elevator, leaning her head against the back wall, closing her eyes so she wouldn't have to see the doors close on a place she may never see again.

Chloe lay awake, eyes open in the darkness, the loneliness of being awake in the middle of the night amplified a hundred fold. "It's you Chloe. It always has been." The words echoed painfully in her ears. Words she'd wished to hear from Lucifer's lips so many times, seemed haunting now. Part of her wishes she'd never heard them because after he had left, she could have eventually accepted that he didn't feel the same way. She would have assumed that Eve was Lucifer's first love and what she felt for him wasn't reciprocated. She would have been sad and certainly missed him, but knowing he had loved her for so long and she could finally truthfully accept his love was excruciating. For that brief moment, seconds even, they had it – perfect love. One feeling the same way as the other, accepting every good and dark side of the other. Words pairing, lips knowing, tear melding. Knowing he loved her too, was crushing her. Chloe turned over on her other side, the tears flowing freely and silently. Not that she couldn't have had a good, loud, sobbing cry followed by a bottle or two of wine. Trixie was at Dan's so the house was absolutely quiet and still.

Where was he, she wondered in the blackness. Was he thinking of her, feeling the anguish of their distance or was he having to forget everything that had happened just so he could carry on? She wanted to forget everything to make the pain stop, but she wanted to remember every moment too. Especially if Lucifer didn't have that luxury. She would remember for the both of them, she decided. Although as hard as she held onto the memories, they may just die with her. Would he ever return to her? Would she be old and frail by then, a stark contrast to his unchanging, beautiful tempting face and body that resembled a sculpture that should be roped off in a museum, where only the most priceless art was displayed. Chloe closed her eyes, willing sleep to come to put her out of her misery. So this is what a hell loop felt like, she thought.

The next day, Chloe called her work and took some personal time. Dan had dropped off Trixie after school, giving her a look of concern that was almost her undoing. Chloe held her daughter tightly after Dan had left. Trixie pulled away, an eyebrow raised in confusion. "I was only gone one day," she reminded her mom.

"I know Monkey," Chloe said, trying to smile. "I just really missed you." Her daughter took in her pale face and dark circles under her slightly swollen eyes. Sliced cucumbers only got you so far.

"What's wrong Mama?"

"Chloe shook her head. "Nothing's wrong. I just haven't been feeling very well. I took off a few days from work."

Now her daughter looked concerned. "You never miss work," Trixie reminded her.

Yes, Chloe was driven, hardworking, dedicated – sometimes to her detriment and even if she was sick, she often dragged herself to work. But that impressive attendance record was partly because she had someone at work waiting for her, to bounce ideas off, to try not to laugh at his frequent, off-colour jokes and to roll her eyes at his flirty remarks – sometimes just a look, a wink, a brief touch was enough to fluster her and make her babble on about the case they were working on. It was all to cover up the fact that she was not immune to Lucifer's charms. She was only human and imagining those dark eyes, seemingly looking into her soul, made her sigh even now.

The following night was the same for Chloe. Awake, fresh tears, thoughts flowing – hopes, fears, loss, longing – looped around in her mind again and again. Why did they finally find their way to each other, only to be torn apart again? Chloe knew the world wasn't fair. All they'd gone through, the pushing and the pulling, the laughter and smiles and tears and frustration followed by the fear and mistrust and finally coming around to mutual love. What a cruel twist of fate that had been awaiting them. Hell actually existed, Chloe reminder herself. Maybe this is what it felt like.

The next day, Chloe had gotten Trixie off to school then crawled back into bed, trying to forget, then finally succumbing and yearning to recall every moment – his soft touch, his hand on her cheek, wiping away tears, lips against hers – that one brief fleeting moment. Could she have said more, done more, she asked the torturous question again. She'd practically begged on her knees for him to stay, crying with no control, which she'd never done for anyone before. Lucifer had looked at her with hope and love, maybe even a little pity, then loss for the both of them. But Lucifer had it so much worse, she reminded herself. Chloe was here on Earth with her daughter and family and friends while Lucifer was in literal hell. He was carrying out his obligation that needed to be fulfilled to keep everyone safe. The man who could be selfish and thoughtless had committed the ultimate act of sacrifice, leaving the place and people that had made his first home to protect them all…to protect her. It had been his final act on this earth and it had been in love. Lucifer had denied himself his first love to keep them all away from the depths of hell.

As Chloe closed her eyes and eventually succumbed to a restless sleep, so exhausted that her body wouldn't be denied, she could swear as she drifted off, that she heard his voice – sweet, playful and seductive, the word she longed to hear with all her heart…"Detective."


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning, Chloe dragged herself out of bed feeling exhausted from the lack of sleep the night before. She made Trixie's lunch for school and got her breakfast ready even though she wouldn't be up for another hour.

A knock at the door made her jump. She looked at her phone, seeing it was just after 6:00am. She noticed all the missed called, messages and texts that she hadn't had the heart to open – from Ella, and Dan. There was even one from her Mom. Opening the door, Maze burst through, followed by Amenadiel.

"He's really gone, isn't he?" Maze exclaimed angrily.

Chloe gestured for them to keep their voices down and went to close Trixie's bedroom door.

Amenadiel turned to Chloe who took a seat at the island. She felt like she should sitting down for this conversation. "We didn't see Lucifer again after the battle at the church. We assumed he had left to work through everything. Or he was with you." Amenadiel took in Chloe's dishevelled appearance and wrinkled pajamas. "Although that doesn't seem to be the case."

Chloe shook her head slowly, not wanting to say the words aloud. "No, he's gone. I saw him at the penthouse after the church. He said goodbye."

Seething, Maze held up a note. "So 'Gone to Hell. Take care of everything while I'm gone' wasn't some sort of bad joke?"

"No, he literally flew off the balcony into the night. I thought he might meet up with you, to let you know…or to take you," she said sympathetically to Maze, knowing she couldn't get to Hell on her own without wings.

Amenadiel held up his own note. "Figure it out Brother," he read.

Chloe let out a little smile because it was exactly what Lucifer would say. "After the prophecy turned out to be about the evil coming to Earth, he didn't see another choice than to go back and take his place. I tried to get him to stay," Chloe said, wiping a stray tear away, hating that she couldn't be stronger.

Amenadiel gave her a look. "When Lucifer makes up his mind about something, no one, not even you, who he loves desperately, can change his mind." He smiles slightly. "It's the least selfish thing he's ever done."

"So is he expecting me to take over Lux?" Maze whispered angrily. "I'm a bounty hunter. My days of bartending are long over."

"I don't know what he intended," Chloe said honestly, "but if I'm guessing, I'd say he wanted Amenadiel to figure out a way to get him out of Hell and for you Maze to keep everyone safe and keep things going so he has something to come back to."

Maze still looked pissed off, but seemed to back off a little.

"How are Linda and Charlie?" Chloe asked Amenadiel. "I wanted to get over to see them. Maybe in a few days," she added, hoping she would be up to leaving the house by then.

The pride in Amenadiel's face was unmistakable. "They are both wonderful. Charlie doesn't like to sleep a lot, but it sounds like I can take advantage of that and do some research on how to get Lucifer home."

Chloe looked at him gratefully. Her biggest accomplishment lately had been actually taking a shower. She wouldn't have been able to imagine how to begin taking on the monumental task of biblical research. She guiltily thought back to her research in Rome when she was trying to find out everything about Lucifer's history. Had she bought this all on because of her brief partnership with Father Kinley?

Amenadiel must have seen her pained expression because he reached over and squeezed her shoulder. "We're going to get him back Chloe."

"Can Lucifer come over and play Monopoly?" Trixie asked over breakfast.

Chloe tightened her grip around her coffee cup. She had been thinking about him just then, imagining if he had been able to stay, what would they be doing right now? Would he stop by for breakfast before he drove them to work to start a new case? Would he already be at her house, having stayed over? Would have Chloe let him? To wake up in his arms she probably would have. Then banished him to the couch so Trixie wouldn't be confused. It sounded all too normal, but she'd long imagined how those sculpted muscles would have felt under her wandering hands.

She had just been remembering his voice, last night just before she drifted into sleep. She could almost hear him say, "Detective," like he was whispering into her ear. But she knew it was all in her mind, wishing something that wasn't going to happen.

Chloe sighed and put her mug on the counter. She hoped Trixie hadn't heard anything of her conversation with Maze and Amenadiel earlier. Even if she hadn't, she was going to tell her daughter the truth. No only so Trixie didn't hold out hope that Lucifer would appear anytime soon, but also because she couldn't put on a façade. Hearing his name made her heart ache.

Chloe took a deep breath. "Lucifer had to go away Monkey."

A look of concern passed her daughter's young face. "Where did he go? When is coming back?"

God, she wish she knew the answers to those questions. "I don't know when he's coming back Trixie. He had to travel far away, to help his family. He didn't want to go," she tried to explain, "but he needed to. For a job that only he can do."

"Is he opening another Lux?" Trixie asked with a frown.

"No, he's looking after…another place. It's much bigger than Lux which is why we don't know when he'll be done and can come home."

"Did Maze and Amenadiel go with him?" Trixie asked, her head tilting thoughtfully to the side. "They're his family."

"No, they stayed here Sweetie. Auntie Linda and Amenadiel just had a baby and Maze is staying in Los Angeles. She'll look after them while Lucifer is gone."

Trixie sighed a little. "Why didn't Lucifer say goodbye?"

Chloe's mind flashed back to their tearful confession and hasty departure. She squeezed her daughter's hand then picked up her coffee mug again so she wouldn't dig her nails into her palms. "He had to leave quickly. But I'm sure he's thinking of us both while he's away." She thought of Lucifer so much, she felt she could almost conjure him in her mind, feel his presence at times in the night, his smell – like the most delicious cologne of warmed wood and rich whiskey with just a hint of spice. She'd had always assumed it was something that came out of bottle that he put on every day, but now she wondered if that was just his natural scent, heavenly and dangerous at the same time. Chloe was sure the smell lingered in her senses as she felt sleep take over, his soft, warm breath on her cheek. But when she had reached out for him, she was alone.

Today was the last day that Chloe was staying at home. She'd been away from work for three days plus the weekend. She knew it was time to return to her life, her routine. But being back out in the real world by herself, made her apprehensive. Heaven knew Lucifer was like a three year old on a sugar fix most of the time, scattered, distracted, impatient, but she always knew deep down that he was there for her and she could depend on him when she truly needed him – when Graham had taken Trixie, he had followed her and made sure they had been ok, even though he could have died.

And when she'd been poisoned, he had gone to literal Hell to save her. She had found that a hard one to wrap her human brain around. She had been on a stakeout with Lucifer a couple of months after she'd returned from her trip to Rome, her head swirling with so many questions. As they sat in the car, waiting for a suspect-in-hiding to return to his shabby apartment, she'd asked Lucifer about the poisoning reluctantly, as she did most times when she had questions ADF - After Devil Face. She had known at the time when she was in the hospital, slowly worsening and getting closer to death, that it was very bad. Everyone – Dan, Linda, Ella, even Lucifer had had such concern thinly veiled behind their optimistic demeanor. When she'd been saved, she knew that some type of miracle must have taken place. And when she had asked how they had saved her, Lucifer had simply said it was team effort. She knew Amenadiel, Linda, and Maze were involved, she just didn't know how. "Why I went to Hell for you," Lucifer had said matter-of-factly, as though he was saying he'd popped into the corner store for a carton of milk. Chloe's expression must have been one of shock and disbelief, because he'd added, "How else was I supposed to extract the antidote from that crazed scientist?" She'd heard of the expression 'moving Heaven and earth', but this was new to her. When Chloe was still trying to make peace about Lucifer being the Devil, she thought back to that moment – that Lucifer had gone to a place he hated and had left to escape really, not knowing if he would be able to return to Earth to save her life. She wondered how many other times he had stepped in to keep her safe. Her devilish guardian angel.

It was many of these thoughts and facts that had been gathered over the months that had made Chloe accept and trust Lucifer again. She had only known pieces of the story and she knew a lot more now, certainly not even close to everything, but she had built up enough evidence to conclude that she and Trixie and everyone she cared about were safe. Maybe not in that ignorant 'I had no idea Heaven and Hell were real' but she knew Lucifer would never harm them and would always try to keep them safe. Like he was now – leaving Earth and returning to Hell to avoid L.A. from becoming Sunnydale.

Later that evening, Trixie's soft humming pulled Chloe out of her head where she seemed to be spending a lot of time – lost in thought, attempting to make sense of everything and trying not to forget a single moment she had with Lucifer.

"Are you enjoying the movie Monkey?" she asked pulling her daughter closer, not that she needed to ask. This must have been their twentieth viewing of The Greatest Showman. But Trixie hadn't been her usual exuberant self since they had talked about Lucifer having to leave.

"This part reminders me of you and Lucifer."

Chloe looked at the TV a little confused as it was the scene where Zac Efron and Zendaya were trapezing around the circus singing Rewrite the Stars. Now were they singing about flying. Lordy, did Trixie somehow know about Lucifer's wings? Chloe held her breath, wondering what to say.

"If it works out for them in the end, maybe it will for you and Lucifer too," Trixie commented with conviction.

Chloe was a little relieved that even being the child of a divorce, her daughter still believed in happy endings. Then she blinked with confusion. Why would Trixie think she and Lucifer were in a romantic relationship? She never saw them even touch and any flirting was usually at the office or when they were out on a case and Trixie would never have seen it. "Lucifer and I aren't together Sweetie, you know that."

"I know," Trixie said with a sigh, turning to her in the dim living room. "But I've never seen you look sadder Mama."

Chloe could feel that all too familiar burning in her throat surfacing, from trying to supress tears. She tried to keep her pain in, but even she didn't have the power to hide it from Trixie. "I'll be better Monkey. I just need some time until I'm not so sad."

Trixie nodded slowly, her mind seemingly onto something else. "Y'know, when Lucifer does come back, I would be ok if he was my other dad."

Chloe couldn't stop the laughter that bubbled up inside her. She was relieved that she was still capable of laughing because the thought of Lucifer joining their family and Trixie trying to hug and be around Lucifer, constantly making him uncomfortable, was so funny to her. "Thanks Sweetie," she said wiping away a few stray tears. "I'll keep that in mind."

That night as she lay awake, the tears returned. She had been feeling alright before, but the darkness and loneliness just crippled her in the darkness. It had been five long days since she'd said goodbye. She always tried to be so strong in her life, but this was just too much.

When she'd met Dan, they had been like high schoolers who couldn't keep their hands off each other, but he had never really accepted her as an equal in their relationship. He had always been the provider when she was the cop and he was the detective and when she had stepped up, he never seemed to support her or take her seriously. Divorcing had broken her heart, but mostly because of Trixie. She had been disappointed when their relationship had ended, but she wasn't devastated. It was more of a relief that they'd all made it out the other side and she'd just hoped their daughter wasn't too scarred by the experience.

She had always hoped to find unconditional love that everyone strived for, but didn't always believe it was out there. And she had finally found it, but in the most bizarre way. She wanted to tell Lucifer, that when he had said that she was his first love, that he was her first true love. Someone who supported her, but let her stand on her own, who made her laugh and forget how dark things could be. In a way, he'd taught her what unconditional love meant. It certainly wasn't a traditional relationship, but you didn't always have full control over who you loved.

Chloe pulled up the blankets to cover her chest, trying to shelter her aching heart, seemingly to protect it. She turned over, her temples and hair damp from her tears. The clock read 1:25. She had to try to pull herself together. She was back at work tomorrow, starting a new case and having to put on a brave face for all of those wondering where Lucifer was – especially Ella. She was such good friends with Lucifer and she was always rooting for Chloe and Lucifer to get together, not realizing the obstacles they'd had to overcome to get to this point. Ella would be crushed to learn that Lucifer was gone.

Chloe tried to even her breathing and unclenched her body in the hopes she could relax enough to get a couple hours of sleep, but she just felt so uncomfortable and exposed. She had laid it all on the line for Lucifer, revealing ever personal, intimate feeling of vulnerability – love and fear, and she was alone anyways. After this, she couldn't imagine ever doing that for any man again. If it wouldn't work when she knew every deep, dark crevice of another person – the angel and the devil – and she was willing to accept him, how could she willingly expose herself to another person, seemingly mind, body and soul, if this is how it felt afterwards? And would any 'normal' human man do afterwards? Once you've experienced the supernatural, how did you go back to a regular run-of-the-mill man? And to be truthful, even before she know Lucifer was the devil, he was never an ordinary man.

She imagined then if Lucifer's arms were wrapped around her this moment, keeping her secure and loved. Then she thought about his wings wrapped around her. She had experienced it before – a brief flash of a memory when Lucifer had kept her safe from Pierce, well Cain's bullets. Of course it had made no sense at the time. She'd thought it was a crazy reaction to being shot and knocked unconscious, from the shock and pain of the bullet hitting her vest, mere millimetres from certain death. It had felt like being in the safest cocoon – where it was only her and Lucifer and he was protecting her from every possible danger. She wanted to feel that again and it was with that thought that she was finally able to succumb to sleep.

"Detective?" The sound of his deep, beautiful voice, that sweet accent that often made a warmth spread through her body. "Detective?" She could feel the heat working its way up.

What a lovely, bittersweet dream to have, she thought, barely being pulled under the surface. After her dad was gone, after the horrible nightmares eventually subsided, she would have a rare dream of getting to see him again, to talk to him, knowing he was gone, but being grateful for that gift.

Not surprisingly, thinking of Lucifer so much had made him appear in her dreams. She certainly wouldn't be opposed to a sexy dream to get through the night. It didn't seem like they'd ever get their chance to truly be together and so a little action in her sleep could be a very small consolation. Chloe took a deep breath, waiting for what would come next.

"Detective?"

Chloe felt herself jump, but she wasn't in her bed, she was still in the dream, but she didn't know where. She was sure she'd heard his voice as though he was right there beside her. She'd heard about lucid dreaming before, but had no idea it was like this.

Then she heard a heavy sigh. "For Heaven's sake. Chloe!"


	3. Chapter 3

Chloe went completely still until daring to use her voice. "Lucifer?" she asked cautiously into the darkness.

"Finally!" Lucifer said impatiently. "I thought I was going to rupture a blood vessel calling for you. I didn't know if I was on the correct frequency, so to speak."

"What's happening?" Chloe asked, her voice sounding small and uncertain. "Am I losing my mind?"

Lucifer scoffed. "Certainly not."

"Then how am I talking to you right now? Where are we? And is this really you?"

"Of course it is. Who else would it be?" He sounded insulted. "Don't tell me you've already forgotten the Devil's sexy voice?"

"How could I?" she replied, feeling herself falling back into their flirty banter. Even if it was a dream, it felt so good to be quipping with him again and hearing that familiar, smooth, warm voice. "I just don't understand how it can truly be you. I'm asleep and you're in Hell…unless you're not?" She asked hopefully. She could hear herself – vulnerable, desperate, hopeful – she only ever sounded this way with Lucifer.

"No, still here unfortunately. The place is as dreadful as I recall. So much screaming and torment and the ash is everywhere. Every suit I have is covered in it."

"Aren't you your devil-self when you're in Hell? I mean punishing someone in your human form is hardly a punishment. It might even be welcomed," she admitted sheepishly.

She heard Lucifer chuckle. "Oh Detective, how I do love when you try to flirt." She can hear the smile in his voice. How she longed to see it.

"Human form when I'm in the throne and devil self during punishment usually, but it just depends on the occasion." He clarified. "Although that's how it worked before." He paused. "I haven't really had time to check out the devil face/body sitch. Or wings for that matter. Truthfully, I've been in such a foul mood since I've been back that I haven't tested anything out yet. Everyone has been giving me a wide berth."

"So there's an actual throne?" Chloe sputtered.

"Yes, an extremely uncomfortable one that is a literal pain in my ass."

"But how am I able to talk to you – have you become telepathic?" She asked.

"I can't quite figure it out myself," he said, seemingly unconcerned. "Amenadiel's theory is that I'm 'broadcasting'." Chloe can almost see him do air quotes. "Basically, I left a part of myself there because I have such a connection to Earth…and to certain people, that something is keeping me tethered." He stopped. "Well, that and I am an angel. That has to provide some perks."

"Wait," Chloe interrupted, "how have you talked to Amenadiel? He's not with you in Hell is he?"

"Heaven's no." Lucifer said with laughter. "Having a child out of wedlock isn't enough to get you here, so humans have it wrong again. I tested it out on Amenadiel first in the event it had some adverse reaction. He had just put baby Charlie to sleep and was dozing off and I surprised him so much he almost needed a diaper change for himself." Lucifer said gleefully. "I guess I was just thinking of everyone…well you specifically Detective," he said quietly and Chloe's heart clenched, "and I just tried to reach out to you to get your attention."

"When did you start trying this? I swear I've been feeling your presence and heard you saying my names for the last few nights, but I thought I was just imagining it because I missed you so much."

"You miss me, do you?" Lucifer asked playfully.

"You have no idea Lucifer," Chloe said, her voice thick, willing the tears to stay put. If this was really Lucifer that she was communicating with and not some insane dream or hallucination, she wasn't wasting a second on tears. "I have been thinking about you so much, I thought I might conjure you."

"Well, hang on a second," he spoke up. "Perhaps that's the missing piece – you're keeping me tethered because…"

"I won't let you go," Chloe said, her voice barely a whisper.

She heard Lucifer's sigh. "Let's not get all sad and weepy. Tell me what you've been up to Detective. Any stray demons roaming the boulevard?"

"No, I haven't heard anything thankfully, but I haven't been at work either."

"Are you ill?" He asked with concern.

"In a way, I guess. I'm going back tomorrow, but I just didn't see any point in being there if you weren't. I know it sounds silly."

"It's rather sweet actually," Lucifer answered. "I wish I could see your lovely face," he says wistfully.

"Me too." Chloe responds.

"But which one," he teases.

"I will take you any way you come."

"Well, I certainly would," Lucifer said seductively.

"Lucifer…" Chloe says annoyed, but grateful to be agitated by him again.

"I've just been trying to get through the day," Chloe finally says.

"Me too Detective," he says softly.

"Trixie keeps asking when you'll be over to play Monopoly."

"You tell Trixie that when I'm back, it will be one of the first things I do."

Chloe's heart felt full. Lucifer never called her daughter by her first name and it was a rarity for Chloe to hear her own name spoken by him. She always assumed it was to keep his distance and maybe it had started that way, but when he called Trixie "urchin" or "offspring", and Chloe "The Detective," it was such terms of affection.

"What will be your first stop?" Chloe asked hopefully.

"Well, the penthouse to change into some laundered, non-ash covered clothing and then I'm having several proper drinks. I assume Mazikeen has moved into my place while I'm away?"

"Yes, she got things back in order for when you get…home."

"Oh, but mark my words Detective," Lucifer said slowly, his words dripping with desire, "my first stop when I return is to take you into my arms and give you a proper, mind-altering, open-mouthed snog that you will never forget."

Chloe felt her body warm at Lucifer's words. "I feel like you use a lot of tongue," she teased.

"Only in the right places Detective," he promised.

Chloe felt like her body was on fire, like he was pulling her into hell without even knowing it. "This is the strangest phone sex I've ever had," Chloe admitted.

"It's certainly showing promise." Lucifer said, his voice like honey. "But you need to get some sleep so you don't get yourself killed on the job."

"Don't leave Lucifer," Chloe said suddenly. She felt like she was suffering from a form of emotional PTSD. She had relived the scene of Lucifer leaving her so many times, the fear and desperation of being left alone was staggering.

"Oh, Detective," Lucifer said, he voice sympathetic. "I didn't want to then and I don't want to now, but I need to. You need to sleep and I need to punish."

"How do I know this will happen again – that we'll get to talk again, or whatever this is? Otherwise I won't let you go," she said, her voice full of conviction.

"Detective, I promise you, no matter what, I will find a way to be with you. If it can only be this way for now…we will be together."

Chloe had promised herself she wouldn't cry, but she couldn't say goodbye again. "Say the words," she whispered.

"I love you Chloe Jane Decker," Lucifer said, with emotion thick in his voice. "Now go to bed," he said sternly.

"Whatever you say Lucifer," Chloe said with a little smile, then drifted into a deep and heavy sleep for the rest of the night.


	4. Chapter 4

**Thanks for all the follows and comments! I hope you're enjoying the journey to get Lucifer back to Chloe. I am so happy for a fifth season – bittersweet certainly that it is the last season, but I am so happy we will get a proper send off to our beloved series. **

"What have we got Ella?" Chloe asked, as she walked into a large, immaculately designed kitchen that was nearly the size of her whole apartment. A man's body lay face down, blood soaked through the back of his grey sweatshirt. Chloe certainly wasn't wishing for a murder, but had been relieved when a case had come up so quickly. Her mind was whirling over what had or hadn't happened last night - possibly communicating with Lucifer from Hell.

The perky forensic scientist looked up at her colleague from her crouched position with surprise. "You're back!" she exclaimed. She bounced up, wrapped her arms around her friend and squeezed. "I was so worried. Dan said something about Lucifer being gone and you were in really rough shape. I texted and tried to call you, but I never got a response." Ella pulled back abruptly. "Wait a minute, why aren't you more devastated? Dan didn't really have any details where Lucifer went." She looked around the room. "Is Lucifer back?" she asked hopefully.

Chloe shook her head regretfully. "No, he's not. He had to take care of some family business with his…Father. It's far away so with the time difference, it's been hard to connect." She held up her hand to stop Ella from launching into fifty questions. "But we did talk yesterday. Lucifer doesn't know when he'll be back, but I'm hoping it won't be for as long as I feared. He just needs to figure some things out."

"Yeah, England is like an 8-hour time difference" Ella said nodding slowly. "Strange he didn't even say goodbye."

"It was a last-minute trip," Chloe sighed, looking into the distance. "You know, one minute I was confessing my love for him and the next it was literally like he'd disappeared off the face of the…" She stopped as she saw Ella's face. Crap, she hadn't meant to say that last part out loud.

"Are you serious?" Ella asked, her voice raising up several octaves. "Please tell me you're serious," she said suddenly all-business.

"It's true," Chloe confessed, then looked around at the other officers milling around the house. "Although let's keep it between us."

"Of course," Ella mimed zipping her lips. "Please tell me he said it back," she said, hope brimming out of her voice. "Because after all you two have been through, if he didn't say it back, I might have to kill him."

Chloe nodded with a small smile. "He did."

Ella looked upwards. "Thanks Big Guy," she said enthusiastically. She turned back to Chloe. "Tell me everything. What happened next? Did you…?" she asked with raised eyebrows.

"No," Chloe said abruptly. "Like I said, it was a quick exit." She gestured back to the body. "So about the victim…"

"Yes," Ella nodded quickly. "But you are telling me everything over drinks," she said with a wink.

"Absolutely," Chloe said. Although with leaving out all the supernatural drama, body-swapping and ass-kicking, it would be a short story.

"Our guy is Derek Rollins, thirty-two. Obviously cause of death was these six knife wounds to his back. I lot of rage went into this one. The house was vacant, but it was his grandmother's before she passed away a few weeks ago."

Chloe noticed the victim was in serious need of a haircut and shave and his whole wardrobe looked shabby and ill-fitting. "He doesn't really look like he fits into this high-end neighbourhood."

"His ID has him living in a much less fancy locale, in the south end of the city." Ella handed over his ID.

"So what was he doing here? Checking on the house?"

"It wouldn't surprise me if no one heard or saw anything. Did you see how big the yard was?" Ella asked with wide eyes. "You'd need a golf cart just to get to your neighbours."

"Time of death?"

"About four this morning. A neighbour was jogging down the road and noticed the strange grey jalopy in the driveway. They knew the occupant had passed away recently so walked up to the house and noticed the door was ajar. They were part of Neighbourhood Watch so they're supposed to be nosy. They didn't go into the house, but called the police. Officer Johnson is with the neighbour."

"It's possible the victim stayed over and someone surprised him when they broke in." She smiled at her friend. "Thanks Ella."

Ella put a hand to her heart, a smile on her lips. "All the details...you promised."

"Yes," Chloe says with a nod and left the kitchen to get away from Ella's inquisition.

As suspected, it just didn't feel the same without Lucifer there. No one to lighten the mood or bounce ideas off. She'd told Ella that Lucifer would be back sooner than she hoped, but was that just false hope? Just because she was able to communicate with Lucifer in whatever way they had, that didn't mean they'd find a solution to this ridiculous mess. Curse Eve for getting them in this situation.

Although their tearful confessions of love were a painful memory of their goodbye, Chloe held onto their words and raw emotion. This couldn't all be for nothing. It couldn't. And when she went to bed tonight, would she be able to talk to Lucifer again or was it just a one-time deal? She prayed it wasn't because honestly it was the only thing keeping her sane at the moment, which also worried her.

She walked into the ornate living area, artwork and antique dark wood furniture scattered across the room. She noticed the couch looked disheveled with a pastel coloured afghan strewn on the floor, like someone may have been sleeping there and was abruptly awoken. It was time to learn more about Derek Rollins.


	5. Chapter 5

Lucifer shifted in the uncomfortable throne and tried to find a position that didn't cut into various parts of his body. How he missed his Italian leather furniture in his penthouse with all the natural lighting and air conditioning and good booze. And his piano. He sighed. Chloe. He missed her most of all.

If he was being honest with himself, which was a rarity, he even longed for some verbal sparring with Amenadiel and Maze. That was the thing when you were the Lord of Hell. No one argued with you or talked back. They wouldn't dare. It was like being a famous celebrity. And he certainly used to enjoy it – he got off on it – the thrill, the desire to punish. But right now, what he wouldn't do for a classic argument with this oldest pain-in-the-ass brother. Amenadiel was always an easy mark because he could be so holier than thou. Although not as of late. Fatherhood had changed his brother.

Lucifer looked out as far as he could see. Endless chambers and doors of so many souls being punished. And punishing themselves – that made it easier when they did all the work themselves. The old crew was back in place minus Dromos and those that had defied him and taken over the human bodies in Los Angeles. There was a special area, an underground prison that housed those that defied their leader. He would let them rot down there for a while and think of what they'd done. Of course it would feel like an eternity because time moved so damn slow down here. It was like a casino where there were no clocks to measure how much time had passed. The prison was going to get full soon – there had been a lot of disorder while he'd been away.

Lucifer missed Maze too. Hell had been so much more fun when she was by his side. One look in her eyes and she knew exactly what punishment should be doled out. She knew exactly what he thinking but always added her own creative, twisted twist. It certainly was ironic that Maze, who had wanted to return to Hell for so long was on Earth, while he, who wanted to stay on Earth, was in literal Hell. He'd never been so bored in his life. And he'd sat through a police orientation on the proper protocol to fill out paperwork so he certainly knew boredom that brought tears to your eyes. Of course he hadn't listened to a word of the orientation and had finished his flask while he listened to someone is a suit drone on. That actually sounded rather entertaining now.

What would he be doing if he was back home? Perhaps tangled nakedly with the Detective. The very thought made him smile. At the very least, they'd be working a case, stealing longing looks at one another, fully aware that everything had changed between him. Then again, if Lucifer hadn't had to go back to Hell, would have things just gone on as they had before? But that's not what had happened.

Could he do right be her if he ever got the chance? Now that she know who he was, it truly felt real. Now he just had to find a way to get the hell out of here.

One of his most faithful servants from before, Zantos bowed below the throne, seemingly miles below. Lucifer sensed him, rather than saw him. Lucifer stretched his wings, blindingly white against the unchanging grey darkness, happy to be off the sharp-edged throne.

"Zantos, why do you summon me?" Zantos waiting until his name was spoken before raising up, eyes downward. He was large and intimidating fully erect, skin the colour of smooth slate, bald head, angled muscles bursting out of his tight leather pants and muscle shirt. Lucifer couldn't help but admire his guard's statuesque demon body. He, Zantos and Maze had had many a good time together back in the old days. At least Zantos hadn't let himself go while he'd been away.

"Lord, one of the occupants has continually repeated a request of your presence."

"Odd request," Lucifer said with a raised eyebrow. "Who is it?"

"He calls himself Father Kinley."

Lucifer laughed a little. "Oh the Father. How nice that he joined us." He pulled on his cuffs, straightening them. "And so lovely to be requested by name." He shrugged nonchalantly. "Why not? Take me to him."

They reached the heavy door in a few minutes. The oldest occupants were in the further wings while the more recent arrivals were nearby. They required much more attention when they first came, so it was handy to have them closer. Not that it truly mattered where they resided – no one was ever getting out of here anyways. It was the largest add-on prison anywhere – with endless potential to expand. It was almost startling at the rate at which they arrived.

Zantos bowed his head at the door, waiting for his dismissal. "Lovely Zantos. Run along to your next post. I shall enjoy this."

"Yes, my Lord." He would wait until Lucifer had entered before retreating.

Behind the door was a familiar scene, one that Lucifer had been part of, which was a nice touch. It had turned out the suspect in a case had been trying to get Lucifer to reveal his true nature so Lucifer could be sent back to Hell. The murderer had killed himself in front of Lucifer and Chloe to protect Father Kinley.

It was the familiar room where Lucifer had confronted the suspect – dowdy furniture, tacky decorations and a double mirror where Kinley had watched his faithful follower kill himself when he failed to expose Lucifer for who he was.

"Father Kinley, pleasant surprise!" Lucifer greeted the man jovially. "Although not terribly surprised to see you here."

Kinley looked up from his seat, eyes slightly wild. "You're part of the trick, are you? This is amazingly elaborate," he said, almost with admiration.

"Afraid not Father," Lucifer said with a slight bow of his head. "It appears men of the cloth are held at a higher standard than the normal ones. I guess conspiracy to commit murder is just as bad as the real thing."

"I'm a man of God!" Kinley boomed.

"Were," Lucifer corrected him. "As the Vatican stripped your priesthood, you're just Kinley now."

Kinley stood up slowly and looked closely at Lucifer. "So if I'm in Hell, what are you doing here?"

Lucifer sighed. "Long dramatic story, I'm afraid. A vacancy became open for this job years ago and they just haven't been able to fill it. Apparently the job security is a little too secure, if you know what I mean. It's like being a guard at the border crossing on a long weekend – you know they're just going to keep coming through," he said with a smile.

"Your Father sent you back?" Kinley asked smugly.

Lucifer shook his head slowly. "Not exactly. See your preposterous, ludicrous theory held a little water, although different woman and more of a body snatchers thing than actually evil reigning down." Lucifer explained. "I didn't want Earth to become like Hell so I came back on my own to save those I loved."

Kinley flinched slightly. "You weren't expecting that, were you Kinley? Well, you know what they say about a love of a good women? So if the Devil did his duty and sacrificed everything for love, and came to rule Hell willingly, you must be feeling a little…screwed at the moment," Lucifer said gleefully.

"But doesn't punishing make you the monster she thinks you are?" Kinley asked lightly.

"Funny thing about that," Lucifer said with a raised finger. "On Earth, I tended to follow the rules to a point and did nothing truly evil because of human rules. Let's call them 'Chloe's Law.'" He paused. "Down here there are no rules, especially for me. But I'll tell you what," Lucifer said, enthusiasm in his voice, "I'm going to send my favourite faithful servant and punisher Zanos to look in on you. Body like a Greek God and takes his job very seriously. Once you're a little more…pliable, perhaps I'll return and exercise those punishment muscles."

"I will get out!" Kinley called as Lucifer turned towards the door. "I'm a servant of God."

Lucifer turned back and gave a little frown in feigned sympathy. "Sounds like you're going to be here a while with that attitude." He smiled at the thought. "Although, I have to say, to get to personally punish the man who tried to drive apart my first love from me, this one is going to be especially sweet." Lucifer waved nonchalantly over his shoulder as he left the room.


	6. Chapter 6

Chloe tried to concentrate on what she was reading on her computer screen. It was Derek Rollins' RAP sheet and it took up several screens. His criminal past had started in his teens, dealing narcotics at the fancy boarding school he had been sent to. That was followed by multiple arrests for theft – usually items he didn't require like watches and electronic equipment that he liked to lift from the houses of his parents' well-to-do acquaintances and friends. His parents had done a good job of keeping their son's criminal records hidden until he finished high school, but partway through college, the bailing out appeared to end as there was no more bail money posted, no more lawyer provided for his arrests. Perhaps his parents had had a long-awaited falling out with their youngest child.

Chloe sat back in her chair at her desk. She always wanted to get justice for the victims of the crimes she investigated, although she wasn't always sure how good of people they had been. But that wasn't her judgement to make – she knew that with certainty now. What was Lucifer's Father like, she wondered as a shiver went down her spine. She was in love with the Devil, who was the son of God. Complicated didn't even begin to sum up this relationship, if there was even one to speak of.

And what the hell had happened last night when she had been dreaming? She had been communicating with Lucifer from Earth to Hell technically. Long distance charges may apply, she thought wryly. If it truly was Lucifer and not some delusional hallucination. Everything he said sounded just like him. Although if she was crazy, couldn't her mind be creating the fantasy? Was it just a way for her to cope with a grief-filled broken heart?

Chloe suddenly remembered something in their conversation. She grabbed her phone off her desk and went to an empty interrogation room. She found the number and dialed. "This is going to sound insane Amenadiel but did you 'communicate' with Lucifer last night?" She fully expected him to go quiet, then ask if Chloe was ok, in that measured, soothing tone of his when we was trying to make sense of something.

"Can you come to Linda's house?" Amenadiel asked. "We need to talk.'

"I'll be there in 20 minutes," Chloe answered, already walking to the elevator to get to the parking garage.

Sitting across from Amenadiel and Linda in Linda's comfortable Spanish-style home fifteen minutes later, Chloe folded her hands in her lap trying to stop them from shaking. "Please tell me Lucifer contacted you? My sanity is counting on it," she said with a weak smile.

"I did." Amenadiel nodded. "It was quite the surprise at first."

Chloe exhaled with relief.

"But Lucifer and I are both angels and brothers so it made sense." Amenadiel sat back on the couch next to Linda with a frown. "He said he was going to try to contact you because talking to me didn't kill me," he said with a raised eyebrow. "But I assumed he wouldn't be able to connect with you."

"He is the Devil," Linda spoke up. "Maybe being back in Hell, strengthened some of his skills."

Amenadiel shook his head, slightly amused. "In Hell, Lucifer's skills amount to punishment, drinking, partying and sex." He stopped, looking apologetically at Chloe. "That was the old Lucifer though. He's changed so much since he met you."

Chloe took a small amount of comfort in Amenadiel's words. She feared what Lucifer was having to do in Hell and what it was doing to him. Or maybe he was enjoying it – every punishment sweeter than the next and exercising every instinct that he'd had to quell to appease her.

"He's not the same Lucifer as he was before," Amenadiel spoke up, seeing Chloe's mind reeling. "Not by a long shot."

"What's it doing to him Amenadiel?" Chloe asked, fearful for the answer. "What's going to be left of him if we ever get him back?" She felt tears in her eyes, threaten to spill. She felt so damn helpless.

"Chloe," Linda said in her take-charge, matter-of-fact doctor tone. "I have known Lucifer for as long as you have. I have seen the painful road he has traveled to get this far. We have all helped him get there, but especially you. And we will do it again if we need to – to show he is loved and deserves to be loved and we'll squash all that self-doubt and loathing." Linda gave her a determined smile. "I promise you that. Charlie will not stand for his Uncle Lucifer not to be involved in his life."

Chloe smiled at her friend through tears, trying to collect herself.

"Did Lucifer ever tell you about discovering our Father had put you in his path?" Amenadiel asked.

Chloe thought back to the numerous snippets of their ADF conversations. "He said I wasn't in control of my feeling for him before. It was why he went to Vegas and staged the whole 'Candy faux marriage'." Chloe shrugged. "Lucifer's explanations are sometimes a little lacking."

Amenadiel shook his head. "It never made sense to me the way Lucifer was so taken by you." He held up his hand to explain. "You are absolutely lovely Chloe and I don't mean any offense."

Chloe laughed a little. "None taken. Truthfully, I could never figure out what Lucifer's attraction to me was either. I just assumed it was because I wasn't interested in him and I turned him down numerous times, so it was a game. At least in the beginning."

"Lucifer was confused as well. He couldn't understand why he couldn't pull out your desires and why you weren't drawn to him like every other woman." Amenadiel gave a sideways glance to Linda.

"I'm only human," she said in defence.

"But am I?" Chloe asked. "I was thinking back to early in our partnership how Lucifer was asking if I was an angel and wanted to see my back. Of course at the time I thought he was completely nuts." She rubbed her eyes tiredly.

"This may startle you to know Chloe," Amenadiel spoke quietly. "But my Father asked me to come to Earth over three decades ago to help your mother and father conceive. You were blessed from the beginning."

Chloe shook her head. "This just keeps getting weirder."

"In my previous research, I came across a few references to earlier text about something that translated to an 'Earth Angel.'" Chloe gestured for him to continue. "It was essentially a human who had been blessed by God's angels to keep the balance between good and evil on Earth – to try to give humans a fighting chance to survive their selfish and destructive ways." Amenadiel paused. "I believe you are one of these Earth Angels."

"So I have no control over my actions?" Chloe asked exasperated. "I'm just some part of a master plan?"

Amenadiel shook his head. "Just the opposite really. You are born with so much good in your heart, but you have the ultimate control over which way you chose to be. And people react to your goodness as Lucifer has – they can't be truly influenced by you, they have to make the decision, but are affected by you when they are open to goodness. And when they chose the good over evil, there's a strengthened connection." Amenadiel looked at Chloe. "At least that's how I see it. There's no way to prove it, but I believe you're human, but with a touch of the celestial."

Just then, they were interrupted by the quiet cries of an infant through the baby monitor sitting on the coffee table. A moment later, Linda returned carrying Charlie. "He just wanted to be held."

She offered him to Chloe who happily accepted him, enjoying getting to hold a baby again after so many years. She took in his bright eyes and soft face. She had always hoped she'd had another baby, but after Trixie it hadn't happened for her and Dan again. It was probably for the best.

Chloe suddenly looked up from rocking Charlie. "Is Trixie the same as me? I mean, can you pass on this 'goodness' to your children?"

Amenadiel paused. "I don't know how it works. Trixie is very similar to you in that she has a big heart and can see the best in people. She pulls them in. Whether that's an influence as a blessed one or just having you as a loving parent, I can't say."

Charlie squirmed in her arms and Chloe patted him on the back gently. "I may have some hold over Lucifer, but he does over me too." Chloe looked up at Linda and Amenadiel. "I need him back," she said, her voice desperate, but strong.

Amenadiel's heart was warmed for Chloe's love of his brother. He always hoped his brother would put a stop to his destructive ways and truly experience and accept love. And now that Lucifer had, he was back where he never wanted to be again. "We're going to find a way. I won't ever give up on him," Amenadiel stated. But like Chloe, he worried if they were ever able to bring Lucifer back to them, what would be left of him?


	7. Chapter 7

Lucifer looked down from his throne and felt the anxiousness overcome him. He used to enjoy this view. When he'd been tossed out of Heaven and condemned to Hell, he would look over the expanse of darkness – a soft orb of light shone in the distance, but it was a trick the eyes played because there was no light, only varying degrees of dark that gave the illusion of light - and think that if his Father wanted him to rule Hell, so help him he would, just to spite Him really. For over a millennia he had ruled and enjoyed every minute of it – the power, the punishment, the thrill of breaking someone – and then had grown weary. Not of the punishing or the drinking and all the sex, be he wandered what he was missing. A mid-life crisis if you will – if he hadn't been immortal. And he resented his Father for sending him to Hell in the first place, so he rebelled again and left.

If he hadn't left Hell and gone to Earth and eventually built the life he had, maybe he wouldn't be despising every moment of being back. Because being back made him feel weak – like, yet again he had no control over his life. And if there was something Lucifer couldn't stand, it was feeling powerless.

Lucifer thought of those first years on Earth – an endless party – the nights at Lux, the women and booze and everything moved so fast. And it didn't matter because he would never run out of time.

Then he met Chloe. And for the first time since he'd arrived on Earth, it felt like time slowed, but not like on Hell. It was the first time he ever stopped to take stock of his life and he realized he didn't have a lot to show for it – he was surely a success by business standards, and his bed was never empty, but something was missing. His existential crisis had opened his eyes.

Sure, he still did what he wanted to and usually didn't follow any rules except his own, but befriending humans like Chloe and Linda and all that came with it had made life seem fuller somehow. He had fought change tooth and nail and did everything to piss off and push away everyone in his life, but the constants started adding up with the people that made his life better – Chloe, the Doctor, Ella then Maze and eventually Amenadiel- even Trixie if he was being honest with himself. She still put him on edge every time he was around her, but what he wouldn't do for a game of Monopoly and some grilled cheese sandwiches with the Offspring and her mother.

Lucifer shook his head trying to rid the thoughts – having these fantasies that he would see any of them again would only make things more excruciating for him. And he couldn't afford to become unfocused. He hadn't said anything to Chloe, but things in Hell were much worse than ash and heat. With no one to rule which he'd been away, the demons were restless and insubordinate. They had obeyed their ruler for so long until he had left. No doubt they felt like children, abandoned by their parent and now were defiant and ready for a fight. He understood the reaction quite well.

Lucifer had so many of them locked away in the prisons, but would his attempt at controlling the situation backfire? The demons were certainly talking amongst themselves about their time on Earth and how exciting their brief trip away had been – so much potential for punishing real, live humans and the opportunity to turn Earth into the Devil's playground. He had banned body-jumping hundreds of years ago, but now that his rule had been defied, how long until a demon slipped out of Hell and made their way back to Earth?

Lightning in the distance briefly illuminated a small patch of the darkness. The hot, heavy air was taut with anticipation – like the restlessness in the air before a thunderstorm on Earth. Something was coming, Lucifer felt – a change and shift. A rebellion. And he didn't know if it was in his power to stop it.


	8. Chapter 8

_I'm leaving on holidays soon so I may not be able to update for awhile, but I'll be spending lots of time in airports and on planes so I'll have lots of time to keep writing this story. Enjoy!_

It had been three days since Chloe had been back at work and caught the latest case and she seemed no closer to narrowing down suspects in the murder of Derek Rollins. She'd talked to his two older sisters and come away with the same information – Derek had been troubled from a young age. His parents had given their children everything and it hadn't helped their only son from getting into the drugs, and dealing, gambling and stealing. "Did he owe anyone a large amount that they might have come to collect?" Chloe had asked Rebecca, the oldest sibling in her immaculate lawyer pantsuit, had shrugged then wiped her eyes. Chloe slide the Kleenex box to her.

"We weren't really involved in Derek's…issues. Our parents moved to Europe a few years ago to distance themselves from it all."

"What about your grandmother? Did she let Derek stay at her house, bail him out?"

Rebecca had paused. "Grandmother was eccentric. She didn't see Derek's problems. They were close even though he had gotten a lot of money out of her over the years."

"And when was the last time you saw your brother?"

Rebecca clasped her hands on the table. "At Grandmother's funeral about six weeks ago." She shook her head, seemingly to forget. "There was a scene."

The next day, Chloe questioned the younger sister, Jill and got nearly an identical story – a troubled man, wasted potential and a scene at the funeral. "Who did your grandmother leave her estate to? Was it divided amongst family?" Chloe sat forward in her chair in the interrogation room, waiting for a reaction to her question.

Jill shook her head, long blonde wavy hair spilling over her shoulders. She was wearing a designer dress and looked like her makeup had been professionally applied. Apparently being a fundraising coordinator at one of the top hospitals in Los Angeles paid well. "The will hasn't been released yet. Grandmother had stipulated that a certain amount of time had to pass before it could be read." She smiles slightly. "That was so grandmother."

Chloe paged through her notes that she had bought home to look through after she put Trixie to bed. There had been some rough times indeed for Derek – he had spent time on the streets and many jail stints for drug-related charges and robberies, but the last year, he hadn't had any arrests. He hadn't been able to hold a job for more than a few months over the years, but the last six months he been steadily employed at a packing box company. His boss had been happy with him – he was punctual and a hard worker. He knew Derek had had troubles in the past and was trying to give him a chance.

Chloe wished Lucifer was here to talk through the case details with him. He would annoy her or half-listen which would sometimes distract her enough that when she went back to work, she was able to see things differently. Or sometimes Lucifer surprised her with a helpful comment or suggestion when she didn't think he was listening at all. When she thanked him for helping her, he never used to be able to take a compliment, but later in their partnership, he looked proud to have been able to hold up his end of the team. Their partnership had originally started to punish the bad people, but it had turned into so much more. She wondered if he was punishing someone right now. She tried not to think of it.

Chloe set aside the papers, hoping some sleep would clear her head. She also had an early morning meeting with the Lieutenant that was unexpected. She had no idea what it might be about. Maybe the Lieutenant could sense she wasn't at her best mentally, but Chloe was an expert at pushing through the tough times and putting that energy into her work. Whatever the meeting was about, she had a foreboding feeling as she crawled into bed. Wherever Lucifer was, Chloe thought as she dozed off, she hoped he was safe.

The feeling of floating in darkness took over Chloe's senses as she felt everything fall away.

"Lucifer?" she dared to ask into the blackness. There was silence and she felt the disappointment.

Time passed, but she didn't know how much. Then she heard his voice. "Detective?" It sounded further away, as though in a void.

"Lucifer?" Chloe asked breathlessly, as though she'd been running. She didn't realize she'd been holding her breath.

"I'm here," he said quietly.

Chloe sighed with relief. "I wasn't sure I would hear your voice again."

"Didn't I tell you I would find a way for us to be together," Lucifer scolded.

"I didn't think this would be the way it was going to be," Chloe admitted. "When I told you I loved you, I expected us to kiss passionately and begin to tear each other's clothes off."

Lucifer chuckled softly. "So you've thought about it, have you?"

Chloe scoffed. "Like you haven't?"

Lucifer let out a breath, his voice catching with desire. "I am right now."

"So why didn't any of that happen before you left?" She asked, full of curiosity and frustration. "You've been never one to hold back your desires, especially when it comes to sex."

Lucifer sighs. "Those were with other women Detective. You're not like any of them." He voice sounded closer when he spoke again. "I wanted to be with you more than anything – to feel every inch of your skin under my hands and show you how special you are to me, but I knew if I did, I wouldn't be able to leave you." His seriousness took Chloe aback. He was usually so quick with the wit and deflections.

"So how many times are we talking about?" Chloe asked a little giddily. "You've really build up your reputation of your stamina. I hope you didn't exaggerate," she teased.

"The Devil never lies Detective, least of all to you," he said smoothly. "This will keep me going – knowing we will truly be together one day."

"And how about right now?" She asked, afraid of the answer to her question. "How many a times a day is it?"

Lucifer paused. "Well nothing right now. So far it's just been me and memories of 'Hot Tub High School.'"

Chloe felt her body flush at the thought. "Maybe I can do a special re-enactment for you when you return. You do have a hot tub on your balcony…" Her voice was heavy and full of want. She'd never desired anyone more.

Lucifer smiled with delight. "_That_ is what I'll hold onto Detective."

Chloe hated pushing such an unpleasant subject, but not knowing was making it worse. "So…you haven't had sex with anyone since you've been back?"

"About a day and a half has passed in Hell," Lucifer said slightly insulted. "I think I can hold out for a few days."

"But when you do?"

Lucifer paused. "You've talked before Detective about law enforcement officers going undercover – and having to do certain thing to keep themselves in the role. To keep themselves safe." It wasn't a question, but it sounded like one.

Chloe understood even though it broke her heart a little. "Whatever happens in Hell…" she said to try to lighten the moment.

"I need to play a part here Detective," he reiterates.

"I understand Lucifer," Chloe says truthfully. "I do."

Lucifer knew there was something he need to ask that was also an unsavoury topic. "When I find a way out of here, or Amenadiel and Maze do… I need to know despite everything that I have to do here to play my part and I know it's a lot to ask…" His voice faded.

Chloe tried to sense if he was still there. She could feel a lump in her throat because Lucifer was never at a loss for words and also because she was afraid she knew what he was asking. "Yes?" she asked, her voice shaking.

"I don't know who I'm going to be when this is all over but…will you still love me Detective?" The vulnerability in his voice shook her.

Chloe felt the tears leave her eyes, even in her sleep. She knew Lucifer was the Devil and still loved him. Would anything change that? She might need time to work through everything when he came back, but not having him with her wasn't an option. "I will Lucifer," she said honestly. "You just have to find a way back to me."

She heard Lucifer let out a breath. "Of course I will Detective."

"We haven't had a real first date that hasn't been interrupted by a stewardess or me trying to roofie you, or every other failed start." Everyone else had no idea how easy that had it just dating other humans. "Do we want each other so badly right now because we can't have it?"

The doubt creeping into her voice worried Lucifer. If he didn't have Chloe's hope, he felt like he had nothing. "We'll have our time Chloe," he said with purpose. "And it will be brilliant and complicated and messy and we may almost kill each other." Chloe laughed through her tears and Lucifer felt her come back to him. "You just have to not give up on us."

"I won't ever give up on you or us Lucifer," Chloe said with no hesitation.

"Then I need to ask you something very important," Lucifer said seriously. "And I want you to think very hard before you respond."

"Ok," Chloe gulped nervously.

"What are you wearing right now Detective?" Lucifer asked slyly.

"You're such an ass," Chloe answered with laughter. And it was music to Lucifer's ears.


	9. Chapter 9

_I'm celebrating the great news of 6 more episodes of Lucifer with three new chapters...Enjoy!_

The meeting with the lieutenant the following morning was worse than Chloe thought it would be.

She was thankful she'd gone for a run before work to burn off some nervous energy. She'd taken up jogging after Lucifer left. It was something to do in the early hours of the morning when she couldn't sleep as was seemingly the only person awake. She could call Linda because she knew she was probably awake in the night, but didn't want to risk waking the household if by some chance they were actually sleeping. And well, Maze was probably still out partying around 4:30am - she was taking on her role of running Lux with a renewed enthusiasm.

So Chloe ran when sleep was elusive and it helped calm her nerves. She could certainly use some calm right now as the lieutenant announced he had a new partner for Chloe. "It's just temporary until Lucifer returns," Lieutenant Callahan said although he sounded skeptical.

With the lack of details of Lucifer's hasty departure for a vague 'trip', Chloe was certain everyone thought Lucifer had left her and hadn't told her where he was so she couldn't follow. "He's in Hell. I know exactly where he is!" she wanted to shout in her superior's office.

Instead, she reluctantly shook the hand of Detective Jason Sanchez – tall, fit, with salt and pepper hair – some might say quite good-looking in a George Clooney kind-of-way, if Chloe didn't want to kick him in the shins right now. Not that it was Sanchez's fault, she reminded herself. He'd been bought in from the 12th Precinct and had a solid reputation for his last eighteen years on the job.

"I don't want anyone else," she wanted to say. "Lucifer is coming back." But instead she attempted a half-hearted welcome to the Detective.

After Palm Meadow Street, Chloe had gotten used to being a lone wolf. If anything, the alienation had pushed her to be a better detective which was why she had found it so insulting after all her hard work to prove herself when Lucifer, someone without any experience in criminal justice, had been thrust upon her. But over time, she began to realize how much she liked working with him and now she couldn't imagine working with anyone. Even if Lucifer's methods had sometimes drove her completely bananas, it had again challenged her to be a better detective.

Chloe felt obligated to give Sanchez a brief tour, showing him the highlights and ending at the coffee machine. She filled her mug to the top and moved aside to make room, but Sanchez shook his head. "Never got into the habit."

'Good for you,' Chloe wanted to retort, but bit her tongue. She wouldn't be able to get out of bed lately without the stuff. They went back to her desk and she hated when Sanchez sat in the chair that Lucifer usually sat in.

Chloe forced a smile. Thankfully the desk across from hers would be where Sanchez would be sitting and the sooner the better. She took a few sips of coffee then got Sanchez up to speed on the Derek Rollins case, although there wasn't much to report. After she'd questioned Derek's sisters, who had both been at their homes sleeping when the crime had occurred, as verified by their husbands, she'd had a brief conversation with Derek's father on the phone from their home in Greece. He'd said they hadn't spoken to their son in four years, which made Chloe sad, thinking of the complicated relationships between parents and their children.

She had also talked to numerous acquaintances of Derek's – friends, sponsors, workers at the rehab facilities and shelters he had spent time in. There were similar sentiments – Derek had had a tough time growing up, never fitting in with his successful and ambitious family and repeatedly failing to meet their expectations. But they felt he was a decent person who had made strides to get back some control of his life and seemed in a fairly good place before his death.

Sanchez sat back in his chair. "How about some of his street friends, maybe they knew his grandmother was rich and tried to cash in. Or debts from his past. He may have been walking the slightly higher road lately, but that stuff is hard to shake. "

Chloe nodded. "I tried to get a list from the people I talked to, but they're pretty protective of the vulnerable. I think we'll have to find some of his old spots and start asking questions. If he does have friends around, maybe they'll help to get justice for Derek."

Sanchez tilted his head. "That's a nice a sentiment Decker."

"I did say maybe," Chloe answered dryly. She finished the rest of her coffee. "Ready to hit the streets?"

"Sure." Sanchez stood up. "And you can tell me about this previous partner 'Lucifer' on the ride over. I'd love to hear how a nightclub owner ended up being a civilian consultant for the LAPD." He sounded dubious, but also slightly amused.

Chloe gritted her teeth. Her partnership with Lucifer was private – not to be shared with someone she had met ten minutes ago. But as protective of their partnership as she was, she could feel her connection to Lucifer weakening. Before she had felt his presence at times, but now, she felt utterly alone – and with a new partner that she didn't want and a case that didn't seem it would be solved anytime soon.


	10. Chapter 10

"Do you enjoy that?" Lucifer asked as he squeezed the man around the neck and tightened his grip. "Is that what you desire?"

The man gasped for air, but managed to nod. "Yes…it's what I…deserve."

It truly was Lucifer knew because he'd been here so many times in this same cell – sometimes doling out the punishment himself, sometimes watching Maze do it. The man wasn't much to look at – short, pudgy, balding, with beady eyes. He looked like he would have led a boring life with an equally boring occupation, but Lucifer knew every sin of the man who had killed three people in cold blood. And that wasn't all – he'd stalked and terrorized his victims, kidnapping them then leaving the bodies for the police to find. It had taken until the third one when he was finally caught and arrested and another twenty years before he was killed by an inmate.

The man didn't feel remorse, he never had, but he knew he deserved punishment which put him in the perfect place to be. But with so many souls that needed the same attentiveness, it was sometimes awhile until the demons were able to administer said punishment.

Lucifer was bored out of his mind and needed something to pass the horribly slow time. He had thought he'd observe some punishment and maybe step in for some verbal warfare, but like that box that never should have been opened, he felt the familiar pull. And now as he squeezed the man's neck harder, the dark pink flesh turning white around his fingers, he felt the anger of the last weeks boil up in him. It all felt so right and so wrong. It was his nature, who he had been, but not who he was now.

And still, it bought him here. There was nothing else to do but play the part because Lucifer was pretty sure he wasn't going anywhere for a long time. He was making lemonade if you will, but it was a sickeningly bitter drink to swallow.

The man flailed. "Do you deserve this?" Lucifer growled.

The man couldn't breathe, but Lucifer couldn't kill him either so he wasn't too worried. But this was treading down a long, dark, merciless path that had no end. There was no resolution – only more punishment. And that used to ignite a certain thrill in Lucifer.

He waited until the man was on his hands and knees, begging for it to stop and at the same time pleading for it to continue, that Lucifer picked him back up by the neck. Lucifer knew his endless supply of strength had become even more powerful since his return to Hell. He tossed the man onto a wooden chair with no effort and the chair broke on impact.

The setting was where the last kidnapping had taken place. The man had left the young girl on the brink of death when he fled the police. But they hadn't found her in time. Lucifer believed the scene replayed because the man didn't get to complete his work, so he relived the regret over and over again.

"Think of what you've done until my return," Lucifer boomed, his eyes blood red.

The man rolled over panting, trying to catch his breathe. "Yes," he said with ragged wheezes. "I will await your return great punisher."

Lucifer left the cell, trying to catch his own breath. His heart beat rapidly and he wished to just sit outside the cell on the hard, ash-covered ground because the mental exhaustion was overwhelming. His suit stuck to this sweat-covered body. He began the walk back to his chambers, nearly running into Zantos.

"What brings you here Zantos?" Lucifer asked forcefully. Lucifer knew he was supposed to be at his shift guarding the gates.

"I apologize my Lord. There was a punishment in the far wings that took up more of my time than I thought. I will go and relieve Cerise immediately."

But Zantos and stalled and Lucifer looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Yes?"

"I wanted to remark at your glorious return Master. It is inspiring to see you where you belong, doing only what you can do." Zantos' gaze was downward, but his voice was filled with respect.

"Lovely Zantos." Lucifer remarked. "Now run along while I find something else inspiring to bring back to my quarters."

"Yes, my Lord." Zantos bowed before rushing off.

Lucifer was looking forward to a long shower and stiff drink to try to ease the last hours from his memory which he knew was pointless - because new, uglier memories would just take their place.

He wanted nothing more than to hear her voice, to know she was out there somewhere caring about him, but he couldn't run to her every time he was feeling the darkness overcome him, otherwise he was never going to survive this.


	11. Chapter 11

Chloe got home from work later than usual, which wasn't unusual when she was working a case. But she wasn't too worried about being away from Trixie because Maze was with her. As she walked into the living room, the recognizable closing credits music from The Greatest Showman made her smile. Trixie had roped even cynical Maze into watching her favourite movie – and probably more than once.

Chloe and Trixie had been watching the movie most evenings before bed and Chloe suspected it was Trixie's way of getting lost in a fantasy to try to deal with Lucifer being gone. She asked less questions lately about where Lucifer was or when he was coming back or why she couldn't talk to him. Now the conversations about things they used to do together – like games night, karaoke and grilled cheese sandwiches. And all the things they would do together once he was back – movies, the science centre, going for hikes. Chloe had to admire her daughter's optimism that not only would Lucifer return, but that she'd be able to convince him to go on these outings with them. Although Chloe suspected that Lucifer would adamantly refuse at first, and then begrudgingly come along, but not without numerously voicing his complaints for being dragged along in the first place, while secretly enjoying the outing. The thought of the three of them riding around Los Angeles in Lucifer's Corvette, talking and laughing, made her heart ache.

Chloe didn't want to wake Trixie so she covered her and Maze with a blanket then fell into her own bed with exhaustion. It been days since she had talked to Lucifer and in some ways it made it easier – he was like a drug and she'd made it a few days without using, but like an addiction, when she did hear his voice again, Chloe felt herself tumbling down into the want and need.

"Lucifer…are you there?" she asked into the darkness the moment she was asleep. Please be there. She calls out for him again, but feels disappointment, bordering on despair when he doesn't answer back. "I really need you right now." She hates that she sounds so desperate, but she refuses to hold back anymore how she feels about Lucifer. This is all she has and she won't let it go, no matter how unhealthy it may be for her emotional and mental state.

"Chloe?" His voice breaks through her somberness.

"Lucifer," she says with absolute relief.

"Is something wrong?" The concern is evident in his voice.

"I just really needed to know you were there," she explains.

"I know Detective."

She hears his voice, but just barely. "Why do you sound so far away?"

"I can hardly hear you either Detective. Perhaps our connection is weakening."

Chloe doesn't know if he means their broadcasting or their emotional connection, but it scares her. "What does that mean Lucifer?" She feels herself panicking.

"I don't know." Lucifer paused. "Tell me about your day. How's the progress of the case?"

Chloe told him the details leaving out the part about her new, temporary partner. It bothered her enough, but to tell Lucifer could devastate him, to think he was being replaced. She needed him to know he belonged on Earth, where everything and everyone was waiting for him, despite the depressing reality that things were changing and neither of them could do anything about it.

"So basically a man who screwed up his whole life, was surrounded by overachievers who was his family and then others said he was trying to straighten out his life and was a decent person."

"If I could speak from personal experience Detective, you may want to look harder at those overachievers." Lucifer offered. "If there's anything they may want more that success, it may be to make sure your dear Derek stayed an underachieving mess."

"I've thought about that too," Chloe says with a sigh. "But the parents live abroad and the sisters both have alibis, which doesn't clear them in my mind because their husbands are their alibis. If we had some evidence or probable cause, we could get a warrant for the GPS in their cars to confirm if either of them drove out that morning to the grandmother's house."

"Or perhaps the information of their security system in those fancy houses of theirs," Lucifer suggested. "See if anyone was leaving the house at an unusual time."

Chloe smiled. "I dear say, Hell is making you smarter Lucifer."

Lucifer went quiet again until Chloe said his name again.

"Detective…" he said, almost as a pained sigh.

"Your voice sounds so strange Lucifer."

"Detective," he said softly, "the Doctor once told me that if you live two lives, it will eventually tear you apart. And I fear that is what is going to happen to me. I can't keep reaching out for you knowing you're there like a lifeline while I'm stranded here in Hell, feeling like I'm losing myself to the darkness."

"But that's why I'm here Lucifer. To remind you, to know that I'll be here for you and that you'll be able to come back as soon as we can find a way." Chloe felt herself try to convince Lucifer of something that was a losing battle. It was like when she told him she loved him, but his mind had already been made up to leave.

"I want to know you're there Chloe, I truly do," he said sadly. "But I can't be the man you love and this monster I'm becoming again. The pull here is too strong."

"Don't leave me again Lucifer," Chloe said through blinding tears. "Please, I need to know you're ok."

"But I'm not," he said quietly. "And you need to live your life without me."

"Why am I always the one thing you're willing to sacrifice?" Chloe asked, anger building inside of her.

"Because you mean the most to me. Which make this the most difficult thing to do. And if you think this isn't killing me too Detective, then I fear you don't realize the depths of my love for you."

The adrenaline and anger that had coursed through her body just a moment earlier, was now replaced with anguish. "Lucifer, I'm sorry. I know this isn't easy for you." She choked over a sob. "I love you. If you can keep one sliver of this life, please hold onto that. I will be waiting here for you," she promised.

"Goodbye Chloe." Lucifer said with finality, as his voice faded into the darkness.

Chloe bolted upright in bed, heart pounding and tears running uncontrollably down her face. It felt worse than the first time he left. Because she feared with a sickening certainty that this time Lucifer was truly gone.


	12. Chapter 12

_Sorry for the delay...life as usual got in the way and zapped away my time and inspiration. I hope everyone is having a happy holidays! _

A week later, Chloe's first case with Detective Sanchez was wrapped up. A deeper look into the financials of Derek's sisters had shown their success and ambition was eclipsed by a mountain of debt. Jill's husband had made several bad business investments and Rebecca's husband was over his head into gambling.

When the husbands had learned through their sources that Derek was going to receive the majority of his grandmother's wealth, they had devised a plan to kill Derek so Rebecca and Jill would be next in line to receive the inheritance. Although both women were in disbelief over what their husbands had done, Chloe wondered if they'd somehow known of their husband's plan. They didn't seem to be too put out that their brother had been murdered, but there was no way to implicate them. Chloe knew Derek had been trying to turn his life around and that would have to be the silver lining in this case.

"Have a good weekend Decker," Sanchez said putting on his suit jacket.

Chloe had foolishly hoped their partnership would be short-lived, but that didn't seem to be the case. "See you Monday."

Sanchez left and Chloe sat back at her desk, looking at the remainder of paperwork she should complete before she left, but it could also wait until Monday. Chloe was feeling low. It had been over a week since Lucifer had said goodbye to her…again, but she felt no closure. She truthfully found it hard to believe that she's ever see him again, but it was like he was in her soul, absorbed on her skin and a taste in her mouth that she couldn't expel no matter what she did. Chloe dreaded going home to her empty house as Trixie as with Dan this weekend. She picked up her phone, sent a few texts then got up and left the precinct.

I'm sooo glad you called," Ella said, taking a long sip of her pina colada.

"Me too," Linda spoke up. "I love Charlie with all my heart, but I couldn't say no to a night out," she admitted. She raised her drink to the group. "And I stored up some milk so I could actually drink!"

The ladies all toasted. Maze had even shown up. Lux was turning into a profitable venture for the first time since the nightclub had opened. Of course Maze didn't need the money, but it gave her something to pass the time.

"I could use a night away." Maze popped the cap off her beer bottle on the tabletop edge.

Chloe had been relieved when they'd agreed to meet at a downtown bar instead of Lux . There were too many memories within those walls.

Maze sat next to Chloe, noticing the dark circles under her eyes. She knew she couldn't be doing that great if she initiated a ladies' night out. "You look like crap Decker,' Maze commented matter-of-factly. "What's going on?"

Chloe gave Maze an annoyed look. "Thanks for that. I've been working a lot. And I haven't heard from Lucifer in over a week. I'm really worried."

Maze nodded slowly. "I heard about your bizarre communication channel. And you should be worried. Hell is no place for a devil in love. That place is going to rip him apart."

"You're not helping Maze," Chloe chastised.

Maze raised a scared eyebrow. "Do you want me to tell you everything is going to be ok? I'm not the person for that." She leaned back on her bar stool. "And if Lucifer had taken me with him, I could have been there as his protector." There was an unmistakable tone of hurt in her voice.

"He knew you had people to look after here."

"But who's supposed to watch out for him? He's not the same ruler of Hell that he was before."

Chloe stared blankly into her empty glass. "I thought I'd be able to give him hope, to keep him going until Amenadiel found something, but he sounded…different, darker somehow. Like he'd given up trying to fight it."

Maze finished her drink in one long gulp. "Hell is changing him. You have no idea how strong that pull of evil and desire is."

They both sat in silence for a moment, oblivious to the pounding music around them or the conversation at their table. "This is so depressing. I hate feeling helpless." Maze spoke so quietly Chloe hardly heard her. Maze pushed herself off the chair. "I'm getting another round."

Linda slid into the vacant seat and turned to Chloe with a small smile. "How are you doing?"

Chloe shrugged, not bothering to hide her melancholy mood. "I feel kind of stupid," she admitted. "For thinking that I could get Lucifer to stay by telling him how I really feel. Not only did he still leave, but I put it all out there and now my heart just feels cut open and…exposed."

"That doesn't sound like you're stupid," Linda stated. "It sounds like you're in love." She squeezed her friend's forearm. "They can feel like the same thing sometimes."

"I was so naïve," Chloe continued. Maze set another vodka and cranberry juice in front of Chloe. "I somehow thought by spilling my guts that it would solve all the challenges and problems between us. I of all people should know it just complicates things more. And we're no closer to getting Lucifer home. Amenadiel has been pouring over everything he can read and contacting anyone he can think of to find a loophole."

Linda nods. "Amenadiel has been so attentive with Charlie, but as soon as he's asleep, he's researching until well into the late hours, sometimes until dawn. Unfortunately, his network of connections aren't what they used to be, now that's he's back on Earth and has spawned," Linda emphasizes with air quotes, "with a human."

Chloe manages a smile. "I know he's trying so hard. But I feel useless. All I can do is feel the time pass and realize how far away we're drifting from Lucifer." She absently took a sip of her drink and winced. "Why is my drink so strong Maze?" Chloe felt the burning of the vodka move down from her throat into her stomach.

Maze met Chloe's gaze. "You're not going to get out of your head drinking singles."

Chloe eyes her drink. "That's a really strong double."

"It's a triple," Maze clarifies.

Chloe's eyes widen. "Are you trying to kill me? I don't that drink much and I've hardly been eating."

Maze slid over a bowl of pretzels. "I scored these at the bar."

Chloe looks at them, wondering how many bowls she'd need to consume to soak up this much alcohol in her veins. She gave in, took a long sip of her drink and followed it up with a palm-full of pretzels before reacting with a shiver to the strong drink.

"It's the new tequila!" Ella exclaimed. "Who needs a wedge of lime when you have pretzels?"

Despite Chloe's mood, she laughed at Ella's enthusiasm and soon they were all talking and joking, trying to put out of their minds the one friend who would have loved to crash their ladies night out.

A number of hours later, after Linda had conceited and they'd dropped her at home, Chloe, Maze and Ella walked, albeit, slightly stumbled down the streets of L.A., talking and bumping into each other. Chloe knocked into Ella nearly sending her tumbling off the sidewalk into the street. Chloe managed to grab Ella's arm, stopping her from falling as the two burst into fits of laughter.

"I really needed this," Chloe admitted, taking a deep breath of the dank, night air.

Ella linked her arm with Chloe after attempting and failing to do the same with Maze. "Sometimes you just need a night out with your gals to realize everything is going to be ok," Ella said cheerfully. "I mean Lucifer is going to be home soon and you two can finally be together."

Chloe had managed to put Lucifer out of her mind for a few hours and the remainder caused a slight twinge in her chest. She needed to be optimistic, but realistic about the situation, no matter how dire it seemed.

"Because seriously," Ella continued, "the Big Guy would not put the two of you on this Earth and not have you end up together."

Maze turned to Ella, eyebrow raised in a threatening manner.

Chloe gave Maze a 'cut it out expression. "She doesn't know," Chloe mouthed. "Where are we going?" Chloe asked, suddenly realizing that she had no idea where they were. "Is this the way home? Or to a cab."

Maze shook her head, unconcerned. "We're making a stop."

"Where?" Ella asked, then stopped abruptly when she saw their destination. Chloe bumped into Ella and stumbled, causing the two of them to start giggling before Ella got serious. "For real?" She turned to Maze. "I can't. I couldn't."

Maze turned to Chloe. "What about you Decker?" She asked, her tone a challenge. "They serve as the best reminders, like scars."

Chloe's eyes focused on the flashing fluorescent sign. "Doesn't it hurt?"

Maze shrugged. "You have so much booze in you, it'll feel like a paper cut."

"Can I watch?" Ella asked with fascination.

Chloe looked at Ella then Maze. "I couldn't….could I?"

"Just get a small one, hidden somewhere only you and a select few will see," Ella said excitedly. "This is so cool!" she cheered.

Maze pushed them both down the stairs into a dimly lit room. A large man with long, dark hair and tattoo sleeves greeted Maze with a strong handshake. "Jonny, how's business?"

"Maze!" he said with a laugh. "Business is always good when you're around. What can I do for you?"

"I have a new one to add and," Maze turned around and pushed Chloe into Johnny, "my friend is a newbie and wanted something…tasteful," she said with a grin.

"I don't know," Chloe stammered, suddenly feeling a little more sober.

Jonny put his arm around Chloe and led her behind a black curtain. "Let's talk about ideas and you can look at some pictures." He turned to Maze and gestured for her to go behind the red curtain. "Knox will be right in to see you Maze."

"Can I watch?" Ella asked with enthusiasm.

Jonny put his other arm around Ella. "The more the merrier!"

An hour later, Chloe emerged, looking a little paler, but her cheeks were pink with excitement. "Show me yours," Chloe said to Maze giddily.

Maze held up her bicep where various black ink symbols graced her smooth skin. "It mean 'a warrior is never defeated while still in the battle' in demon."

Ella smiled widely. "So awesome."

Maze jutted out her chin. "You didn't chicken out, did you Decker?"

Chloe gave a coy smile then lifted up her black t-shirt to reveal a small mark on her hip.

Maze grinned. "He'll love it," she said with approval, then caught herself and the smile disappeared.

Chloe smiled at her friend, happy that she had gotten out of her head for the night and feeling just a moment of hope. Because if Maze, who the farthest thing from an optimistic person thought Chloe would see Lucifer again, then maybe there was hope after all.


	13. Chapter 13

Chloe lay in bed awake, savouring the quiet before the day would begin. She would start breakfast for Trixie in a few minutes, but for the moment she stayed put. She's been sleeping better which was a relief because she knew she couldn't carry on the way she had been. It wasn't fair to Trixie, or the people she cared about. And she had an obligation to do her job and give justice to those who couldn't for themselves.

Chloe couldn't believe it had been six months since Lucifer had left. In that time, she had solved a dozen cases with Detective Sanchez. She had even begun to appreciate his dedication to the job, even if he could be a hard ass. She didn't resent him anymore either – she knew he had nothing to do with Lucifer being gone. Surprisingly, they'd developed a routine, usually he tried to be the downer and think the worst of people, while she tried to find a glimmer of good in them.

Lately, Sanchez had been more interested in her life, obviously trying to make an effort to get to know her better. She had hoped their partnership would be a temporary arrangement, but a half year had passed and they were no closer to finding a way to bring Lucifer home.

Everything was changing. Little Charlie wasn't a little baby anymore, but a vibrant bundle of energy that liked to crawl around and get into everything. Linda and Amenadiel were so good with him. Chloe loved spending time with their little family and Trixie always wanted to know when they could visit her cousin Charlie again.

Chloe saw Amenadiel had such an overwhelming love for his son, but sometimes her eyes met Amenadiel's and her sadness was reflected in his warm, dark eyes. Lucifer should be there. He was missing everything.

After Chloe had found out who Lucifer truly was and went to Europe to try to escape and process everything, Ella had told her how Lucifer had showed up at crime scenes every time, in hopes Chloe would be there. And although she knew it would take nearly a miracle to get Lucifer back, it didn't stop her from wishing every day that he'd appear, breezing in, joking and holding a special coffee for her. But this kind of thinking was unhealthy and had nearly destroyed Chloe emotionally.

She couldn't afford to spiral now, not when she felt like she had a foot and a hand on the mountain's edge – some kind of holding that prevented her from falling back into the darkness. Linda had been invaluable the last few months, stepping up as her friend and therapist.

Chloe had apologized on numerous occasions for taking up Linda's time during her maternity leave when she should have been focussing on her family. "You're my friend Chloe," Linda had said sternly before smiling sympathetically. "Besides, what other therapist is going to believe you? They'd have you locked up in no time."

Chloe couldn't help but laugh and it was moments like this that had saved her. She had needed to see the little moments – a laugh with a friend, snuggling on the couch with Trixie watching The Greatest Showman for the thirtieth time, drinks with the ladies, a run in the morning to appreciate the warm, morning sun on her face. All of these things slowly bought her back to life, piece by piece, one moment at a time. She wanted with her whole being to have Lucifer with her, to share these little moments, but she knew she couldn't stop living her life because it was fragile and fleeting. She was reminded of this at every crime scene, every victim who had been alive the day before that wasn't anymore. And with the dangers of the job, she needed to keep her head on straight.

A lot of the days had been the same lately – the same routine. Breakfast with Trixie, work, supper, helping Trixie with her homework and sometimes watching part of a movie and bedtime. Chloe usually spent a few hours on housework or a case if she needed a clear perspective away from work.

But Dan was taking Trixie camping for a week so Chloe's routine would be different. Now she had to think about what she'd do to fill the time, and try not feel the stress of this challenging task.

Chloe was lost in her thoughts at work when Sanchez stopped at her desk. She heard her name and snapped out of it. "Do you need something?" She sat up straight and moved a few things on her desk to look busy.

Sanchez leaned on her desk casually. "It's the end of the week and things have slowed down. Do you feel like getting a drink?"

Chloe cursed herself for mentioning Trixie would be away. She felt Sanchez's eyes on her, not sure what to say. This obviously wasn't a date, but Friday after-work drinks seemed a little too personal. And Sanchez did have that reputation that Ella liked to remind her of. "Don't get caught up in those steely gray eyes." She warned. "They're looking out for wife number three." Then Ella would shake her head. "But what am I saying – you have Lucifer so there's no reason to be looking elsewhere…right?" she'd asked, uncertainty creeping into her voice.

"Umm…" Chloe stalled, trying to come up with a credible excuse to turn down Sanchez's invitation.

"There's a group of us going to the pub a few blocks away."

Chloe smiled, relaxing at his words. She wasn't a big socializer with co-workers, but she could manage a drink before heading home.

Sanchez titled his head slightly. "You didn't think I was asking you out, did you?"

Chloe let out a strangled laugh. "The thought had crossed my mind."

He pushed himself off the desk and straightened his tie. "I don't tend to ask out women who are hung up on other guys. Not very satisfying to the ego," he added then walked away.

Chloe didn't know what to think of that, but was relieved he knew where he stood. Which she was thankful for because her workplace romances were, she guessed, well-documented – Dan, then Pierce and now Lucifer. If it didn't work out with Lucifer, she may have to go to another precinct just to salvage her questionable reputation.

An hour later, Chloe was at Vincent's, the local pub that some of the detectives preferred over The Paddock Lounge. She was at a table with Sanchez and two detectives - John Riley and Maria Chan, who she'd known a few years. They talked casually about work and some of their strange encounters with suspects. Chloe sipped her draft beer and chimed in when she had something to add. The pub was loud and boisterous and was now filled with the after-work crowd, enthusiastic for the weekend. The conversation turned to kids and Chloe was surprised to learn that Sanchez had two kids. "Two girls," he said, and Chloe caught the pride in his voice. At the end of the first round, Chloe had thought she'd leave, but the group had talked her into a second drink, which she ordered with a glass of water.

At one point, Riley and Chan were preoccupied with others that had stopped by their table. Sanchez rotated his glass of scotch on the table. "So what is Lucifer really like?" He asked, surprising her. "I've heard all of those crazy, larger-than-life stories around, but that doesn't really seem like your type. You're more reserved and you're a parent." He looked at her, a raised eyebrow, waiting for a response.

Chloe thought of shutting down Sanchez's question, which she had every time he'd wanted to know more about Lucifer, but maybe it was her second drink that made her want to talk about him. She had virtually ignored that part of her brain that made her think of him, just to survive and get through the day. Sadly, it felt like she was talking about someone who had passed on, and left this world – which he had.

"There's always more to someone than what you hear about Sanchez. You know that," she said taking a drink from her glass. He looked at her questioningly.

"He is larger-than-life. He knows how to bring out the best in me and sometimes the worst. He has a good heart that he likes to hide from people. He can be annoying and petty and thoughtless, but he can also be caring and loyal and vulnerable." She stops to think about his crazy grand gestures and their friendship that built over the years. Then she remembers his lips on hers, the kisses for different reasons – until the last one. Finally they were on the same page. But they weren't.

Thinking of him makes her smile a little. Sanchez drains the last of his drink and gestures to the bar. Chloe shakes here had because it feels like it's time to go home – even if it's to an empty house.

"He's a lucky guy," Sanchez says as he stands up. "When someone can see your ugly side and still love you, then you know you're onto something." He walked away, leaving her alone. Chloe put on her jacket and left before Sanchez came back.


	14. Chapter 14

_I hope everyone is staying safe. In these crazy times, now, and more than ever we need something to distract us so I've been writing again. I hope you enjoy these chapters!_

Lucifer was awake, but kept his eyes closed. He didn't want to see what was around him, because he already knew. It was the same as it had been for…he didn't know how long. It had been months, maybe even a year since he'd last communicated with her. If that had even been her. Hell had a way of playing tricks on your mind. Time went so slow and it was so hot and muggy. The sun never shone. And you lost track of time. You lost track of everything. He'd turned it off – all of it. He had to, or he wouldn't survive. It was all gone – his hopes, his fears, his will – usually even thoughts, accept for these pesky moments when he first awoke. When everything was quiet and his mind was trying to remember where he was. He didn't need to open his eyes to know the scene that surrounded him. Bodies lay on either side of him, warm, damp flesh pressed against his – there might even be a demon at the foot of the bed because he was having difficulty stretching out his long frame. Every day & night was a party – after he was too exhausted to punish, they gathered and drank and oh, the sex. He had forgotten just how much sex he had when he was in Hell. Just something to pass the time.

Some time ago, the serious, heartbroken Lucifer had been tossed aside and replaced with a darker and less caring version. This chap knew how to have some fun. He'd let out all the demons who'd been imprisoned, Dromos was a riot – why should they miss all the fun? All was forgiven and now every night was this like this. How he missed Maze. If she was here, she'd liven up the party even more. Lucifer shut off the thought before he'd even finished it. No point in going down that road. He was here, where he would be for eternity and she was…they all were… Lucifer shook his head. There was no anywhere else anymore. It was just this.

Lucifer delicately extracted himself from the tangled bodies and grabbed a half-empty bottle off the floor, downing it in one long drink, but barely tasting it. Part of him enjoyed these moments of quiet before everyone awoke. Of course, outside these dark walls, the punishing continued all the time. It was like a 24-hour convenience store out there. But part of him despised the quiet and was aching for everyone to awake so the party could continue.

There was a knock at the door.

"Enter!" Lucifer called to them.

It was Zantos. Even as his loyal guard, his gaze lingered on Lucifer's long, muscular, naked body before bowing his head. "You have a visitor at the gates Master."

Lucifer tossed the empty bottle on the bed and went in search of another drink. He came across three empties before finding a full bottle. He smiled lazily and picked it up, turning to Zantos. "Who would possibly come here to visit me? And why on Hell would they come here, to this place? It's hardly listed on a traveler's ten must-see vacation spots."

Zantos kept his eyes lowered. "Zantos?" Lucifer raised his voice.

Lucifer could almost detect a sigh from his guard. "It's your sister."

Lucifer's serious expression broke into a laugh. "Which one?"

"Azrael."

Lucifer began to laugh. "Well isn't this a surprise?" He took the top off the bottle he was holding and took a long drink. "Well you can tell my sis, that I decline her invitation to chat."

Zantos nodded. "As you wish, My Lord."

"Wait," Lucifer said as Zantos turned to leave. "Tell dear Azrael that no chance in Hell am I speaking to her so she can just spread those lovely wings of hers and fly back to wherever she came from."

The door closed and Lucifer let out a breath. Just what he needed – some killjoy sibling interrupting his good time. He took another drink than stretched out his shoulders. It was a new day and the possibilities for reducing these pathetic humans into broken, whimpering beings was endless.

"He's been acting different," Chloe said rubbing her jawline absently. She turned to Ella, who was looking at something under a microscope. They were in Ella's lab and Chloe had stepped away from her desk for a break.

"Well you said Sanchez was opening up a little, talking about some personal things," Ella said as she jotted something down on a piece of paper and turned to Chloe. "Maybe it's just taking some time for him to get comfortable with you."

"I didn't know he had kids, did you? Two daughters."

Ella shrugged. "You work together a lot, things are bound to come out."

"But Sanchez? His reputation is being a hard-ass, impersonal, cold even."

Ella smiled. "Maybe he's warmed to you. Spending all that time together, solving all those crimes." She stopped writing and put down her pen. "Have you warmed to him? I mean, have you been sharing personal, intimate things with him as well?"

Chloe raised an eyebrow. "Not really. I mean we've talked about our lives a bit, but hardly earth-shattering conversations."

Ella nodded absentmindedly. "So you're not…interested in him?"

Chloe shook her head. "I admit I like him a lot more than when we first started working together, but I'm not interested in him in that way."

"Because of Lucifer? There is still a Lucifer right?" Ella asked, her voice getting higher.

Chloe shrugs. "Lucifer is going through some things right now. We haven't really talked lately."

Suddenly Ella came from behind the table and gave her friend a big hug. "It'll be ok. I have faith that you two are going to work it out."

"We've got a crime scene to get to Partner." Chloe jumped with surprise as Ella pulled away from their embrace and both looked at Sanchez who was watching them with interest. "I hope I wasn't interrupting anything." He sounded slightly amused.

Ella shook her head. "Not at all. We were just finishing up some…work."

"I'll see you at the car Decker."

He shut the door and Chloe turned to Ella. "See what I mean? He's…I don't know, casual." She let out a breath. "It's a little unnerving. I don't know what's coming from him next."

Ella patted her friend on the shoulder. "Just go along with it for now. If he usually is so bottled up, maybe he's just figuring it out and he'll even out along the way."

Chloe grabbed her coffee cup from the table. "I guess we'll see."

Lucifer watched the debauchery happening in front of his eyes and couldn't help but feel a little proud. The parties in Hell were rather entertaining these days…or nights? Who could tell? The huge cavernous room, which was conveniently located next to his bedroom, was crowded with a few dozen demons engaging in every possible sinful activity that should be happening in Hell. There was a different pool of demons every night so things never got boring. Although he noticed Dromos was absent from the festivities. He had personally invited the usually enthusiastic demon to join them and obviously someone was still feeling a little sore because Lucifer had thrown him into the dungeons before. He'd have to remind dear Dromos that a declined invitation from the Devil himself, wasn't a slight that would be overlooked.

Lucifer took a long drink out of a bottle and smiled salaciously as one of the long-legged beauties came over to him, sliding her gloriously smooth, dark demon skin across his body. Just a moment of this slow dance and she was ready to take him right there, but Lucifer was feeling restless and bored. And he just needed to step away. "Hold that thought," he said with a grin and extracted himself as the demon sidled over to the next warm body in his absence.

Lucifer stepped out into the dark hallway and lit a cigarette, graciously taking in a warm breath. He heard a throat being cleared and turned around. "Zantos," Lucifer smiled. "What's the latest news?"

Zantos bowed his head. "No news to report, my Lord. Except…"

Lucifer raised an annoyed eyebrow. "Spit it out already."

"There is still the unresolved issue of…your sister."

Lucifer sighed loudly. "Her persistence is worse than Amenadiel's. Has she been here this whole time?" Of course Lucifer couldn't tell how long had actually passed since she'd arrived. It could have been hours or days.

"Yes, she said it was imperative that she speak to you."

Lucifer rolled his eyes. "Tell her that I'm extremely busy with Hell business and she needs to make an appointment." He pondered. "I think I'm free sometime at the end of eternity."

"Of course Master. However she did request that I pass on one message."

Lucifer doubted anything his sister said would matter to him in the slightest, but he was up for being entertained so he gestured for Zantos to continue.

"She said the issue involved the 'Detective'." He said the last word in syllables as though the foreign word sounded strange on his tongue. "She said you'd know what it meant."

Lucifer stopped taking another drag from his cigarette, all amusement leaving his features. He hadn't heard that word or thought of it for so long. Hearing it out loud actually made his chest hurt. What could Azrael actually… Then he stopped his thoughts and began to laugh. He knew his sister was here to chastise the way he was running hell. Of course she would love to tell him to be taking his duties seriously as not to anger Father. He'd only seen her once in a thousand years. She was strangely absent after the rebellion and now she had traveled all this way to see him again. She just wanted to ruin his fun with her child-like judgement and he was never in the mood for that. "Hard pass again," Lucifer said curtly and opened the door back into the hot, humid chambers where wicked happenings would continue long into the night.

Later that night though, Lucifer lay awake. He had been serviced by multiple demons, but had sent them all out, wanting to be by himself. He had felt what people described as 'sobering up.' Of course he'd never really experienced the phenomenon, but trust one of his siblings to suck all the fun out of things. Azrael was good, he'd give her that. To dangle the word 'Detective', she knew it would peak his interest. Of course, he'd given up any hope long ago of ever seeing any of the humans back on Earth, but Azrael was certainly a sneaky one guessing even in his current state that it was like an itch he couldn't ignore. A little pesky noise that one had to investigate. And it was what was pulling him out of bed, absently dragging his silk robe over his naked form and leaving the confines of his bedroom. He walked past the guard, Andras, outside the room and began to walk down the long dark corridor, past all the doors.

"Do you require assistance, my Master?" Andras inquired.

"No, I just need some air," he said annoyed, because there was no breathable air in this place. Every breath was like sucking back cigarette smoke which sometime he desired. And sometimes he just wanted to breathe in the cool, polluted night air of Los Angeles and feel that possibility fill his lungs.

He walked for awhile, truthfully not sure how long it would take him to get to his destination as he had walked it so rarely. And his stride alternated from quick and purposeful to slow and hesitant. He hated the idea of giving Azrael ammunition to humiliate him by waving the humans in front of him and here he was taking the bait. A self-righteous sibling could bring up this particular weakness and mock him about it for a millennia or longer. But it was that tiny, nagging intuition that was making him continue forward. He couldn't take the chance that there was some truth to the message even if it meant endless teasing.

Lucifer hardly recalled the last time he had walked this straight route. He had been angry and humiliated and full of rebellious, blinding hate. He had blasted through these gates and never looked back. Now as he reached the doors that seemed to reach the skies in the darkness, he wondered what waited on the other side. Would his pesky sibling even be on the other side or watching from afar to see if he'd been suckered into her little prank?

Lucifer took a breath and pushed through the gates with no effort. Before he heard the thundering sound of them closing behind him, the sight of his sister through the mist came into view. She looked just as she had last time he'd seen her – curious, judgy, and a face like a child, all wrapped into a purple cloak.

He sauntered up to her and shook his head slowly. "Well isn't this a surprise Sister? I mean to actually grace Hell's gate is quite the wonder. After all, I was here for a millennia and you never once stopped by. What takes you away from casting out the dead souls to the heavens to my humble home?"

"Lucifer," Azrael said with a slight smile. "I would say you look well, but that would be an insurmountable lie." She took in his form and tilted her head slightly. "If you're surprised to see me, perhaps the even larger one is that you're in your human form. I thought you'd be in your home skin."

Lucifer shrugged with exaggeration. "One of Father's many mysteries I suppose." He shook his head. "As much as I've enjoyed out little catch-up, I have to say, you did make me a little curious as to what you just had to tell me."

"It was the mention of the Detective, wasn't it?" She said with a little smug smile. "That's what finally got you here?"

Lucifer's annoyed expression was enough to confirm his sister's suspicions. "I don't take kindly to be toyed with Sister."

His sister's usual pleasant face, was serious and something about that made Lucifer uncomfortable. "I was here Brother to deliver a lost soul, but I wanted to speak to you about the rumblings I've heard. The word is that Hell has become even a worse situation than your first ruling and your leadership is being questioned."

Lucifer straightened up to his full intimidating form that of course had little effect on his sister who had seen it time and time again. "Who dares to defy their Master?"

"A few of the demons apparently," she said with a shrug. "I heard Dromos' name being mentioned and a few others that apparently you threw to the dungeons."

"That was a simple demonstration of teaching a child a lesson. All is good now." Lucifer said hotly.

"When was the last time you saw Dromos, because the last I heard, he'd decided to do a little more body-jumping on Earth."

Lucifer's eyes widened. "Why that ungrateful…demon! I took him back into the fold and showed him mercy even when he'd disobeyed my original law."

Azrael shrugged again. "Well, I guess he was feeling like acting out. And now that he's been to Earth, he knows his way around. And…"

"Yes?" Lucifer asked impatiently. Why was it so hard for people to just say what's on their minds instead of the annoying pauses.

"He knows who you care about." She said quietly.

The unsettling feeling that came over Lucifer was indescribable. Who would he hurt – the Detective, Linda, Ella – he knew baby Charlie was far from safe. Suddenly Lucifer was shaking with rage. "What can I do? How do I protect them from here?" His eyes pleaded with his sister.

"You can't do anything from here. And I can't interfere with Father's orders."

"But I can," Lucifer stated. "I'm the rebellious son and this is what I need to do." He started to walk past his sister and away from the gates.

"Brother!" she stopped him with a hand on his arm. He spun around in surprise.

"You can't just leave Hell. This your duty."

Lucifer held up a hand in protest. "How about you stay here at the gates and make sure there's no mishaps while I'm away."

Azrael scoffed. "You can't ask me to do that."

Lucifer thought a moment. "How about you do that and I won't tell everyone that not only did you lose your blade, but the one you've been yielding around with authority was actually purchased off eBay?"

Azrael shook her head in surprise. "You wouldn't do that?"

Lucifer raised his eyebrows as a challenge. "What do you think Sister?"

Azrael shook her head with annoyance, like a scolded child. "I can't believe you're talking me into your silly games again Lucifer. It's just like old times."

He shrugged. "You always like to play games don't you? Remember your conversations with a certain Ms. Lopez? I don't think Father would look kindly at that interference. I'm not the only one who likes to have a little fun on the side."

Azrael huffed, knowing she'd been had. "I will wait here, but you go down there, retrieve Dromos and bring him back here for punishment. No stops or delays, ok?"

Lucifer nodded innocently, "Of course dear sister." He started to walk away.

"And Lucifer?"

Lucifer turned around in exasperation. "What now?"

"You know you can't let them see you right?" she said seriously. "No one can know you were there. It would be a threat to Hell and to Earth to know their leader popped on down for a visit."

Lucifer sighed, knowing how difficult it would be to be back on Earth, so close to all those he loved, so close to her and not be able to see them or reach out and touch them. But with annoyance, he know what his sister said was true. He needed to be quick about it otherwise this acting out with the demons could get much worse if they knew he didn't take his ruling seriously. He was their Master and they needed to respect him. Perhaps his punishings had been a little lax lately. But he also needed to keep the humans safe and that would only be if he could whip back onto Earth with no contact of anyone he knew, grab the disobedient demon and return to Hell immediately. It was the only way to keep them protected.

"I promise Sister." He said solemnly. Then he spread his wings and disappeared into the dark clouds.


	15. Chapter 15

What a manic Monday this was turning out to be, Chloe thought wryly while she frantically pulled into the precinct. She cut the engine and quickly gathered her bag and purse. The morning hadn't started well when she'd slept in, then while she's made up a quick breakfast for Trixie, the babysitter called to say she had unexpected family visiting from out of town so couldn't look after Trixie after school. On top of that her cell phone was acting up. She'd tried calling Dan to see if he could pick up his daughter after work and stay with her until Chloe got home, but kept losing the signal. Now as she was rushing into work late, she tried to take a breath and calm her nerves. It had been a nice weekend. She hadn't had to work so she and Trixie had gone to the beach on Saturday afternoon. On Sunday, they'd gone to Linda's house and visited while Trixie played with Charlie, their laughs and giggles a joyful sound.

Chloe made it to her desk and dumped her bag on the desk, locked up her purse and started up her computer then began a mad dash to get a coffee. She stopped suddenly, mug in hand when she noticed Sanchez wasn't at his desk, his computer was off and no papers were on his desk. That was strange because he was always at the precinct before her. Detective Chan, who sat two desks down from her, must have noticed her slight frown. "Sanchez isn't in today…sick." She said with raised eyebrows.

Taken aback, Chloe shook her head. "Really?"

"First time for everything," Chan shrugged, then turned back to her computer.

Chloe stood in the same spot for a moment before snapping out of it and walking to the breakroom. She was pouring a coffee, lost in her thoughts when the sound of her name started her. She jumped and the coffee poured alongside her mug. She turned to Dan and mustered a smile. "Just that kind of day apparently." Dan passed her some paper towel and she cleaned up the mess. "I was trying to call you today, but my phone hasn't been working."

Dan leaned against the counter. "What's up?"

"Would you be able to pick up Chloe from school? Claire can't look after her. I can probably be there by 6:30." She hoped she wouldn't have a case today and could actually leave on time.

Dan nodded. "I can do that." Chloe threw away the paper towel and moved her coffee mug aside so Dan could pour himself a cup.

"Thank you," she said gratefully. "This has already been such a hectic day, I was just waiting for one win." She smiled and took a sip of her coffee. She hadn't even had time for a coffee at home and savoured the taste.

"How've you been lately?" Dan asked glancing at her, while loading up his coffee with sugar. "You seem good."

Chloe shrugged. "Things have been better. Even work has been ok."

"Sanchez?" Dan asked curiously. "He's hardcore through and through."

"He's not so bad." Chloe admitted. "I can't believe he's out sick today. With his strict, healthy regime, I can't believe his body dared to betray him."

Dan put his spoon in the dishwasher and smiled. "Well if you need a partner for the day, you know where to find me."

"Thanks Dan," Chloe said, then took her coffee and settled at her desk. She had a lot of paperwork to get through, so if by some small miracle she didn't get a case today, she could be caught up. Of course Sanchez was never behind on his paperwork so she could surprise him and maybe feel a little smug about it.

It was later in the afternoon when the desk sergeant stopped by her desk. "A message for you Decker." He handed her a paper with a message on it.

Chloe took the paper. Meet me at the penthouse. It's urgent. Maze. She looked up at Johnson with confusion. "Couldn't you just transfer the call to me?"

Johnson shook his head. "They seemed in a real hurry and said to just give you the message."

Chloe looked at her cell phone with annoyance as it didn't show any missed calls or messages. "Ok, thanks." She picked up her desk phone and tried calling Maze's cell phone, but it rang until it abruptly beeped. "It's Chloe. I'm heading over the penthouse." She hung up, grabbed her purse from the drawer and reluctantly took her useless cell phone. She'd look after getting it fixed once she figured out what Maze needed. "Johnson," she said at the front desk, "I need to head out to get that message looked after. I should be back soon. Just call me on the car radio if you can't reach me by cell." Johnson nodded and Chloe headed to the elevator to get to the parking garage. "This better be good Maze," she muttered under her breath.

Traffic was horrendous and it took Chloe almost 45 minutes to get to Lux. She didn't like being there, even in the daylight. It was like a building of ghosts to her. She punched in the code to the elevator and waited until the door finally opened to the penthouse. Lucifer's penthouse, Chloe thought then shook her head. It hadn't been his penthouse for a while now. She entered cautiously, grateful that Maze had been staying there so there were no depressing sheets covering the furniture. The sunlight streamed into the living area which made it seem more inviting and the balcony door was open, the curtains lightly flowing in the warm breeze.

"Maze," Chloe called out, waiting for a response. If Maze stood her up after getting her here, Chloe was never going to let her hear the end of it. She called out Maze's name again and was answered with silence. Then there was a noise, like a piece of furniture scraping against the polished floor. She looked to the bedroom where the sound had come from and suddenly froze. A man stood in the shadows, he was tall with dark hair, that's all she could make out. She let out a shaky breath, "Lucif…?" her voice caught as the man stepped out into the light. The man had a thin face, clean-shaven and was completely unfamiliar to Chloe. Who was this man? Had she walked in on him robbing the penthouse?

She put up her hand slowly. "Who are you?" Her hand slowly went to her gun.

The man smiled lazily, sending chills down Chloe's spine. She tried to recall his face from a previous investigation, a criminal who felt wronged or a victim who felt they hadn't done enough to help. Or some unsolved case where the criminal had never been brought to justice and felt the need to bring it to her attention. Was Sanchez really ill or had this man also paid him a visit? The anxiety rose in Chloe. When would this day end?

The man slowly shook his head. "I wouldn't reach for your weapon Detective."

Ok, Chloe thought, he knows who you are. Did that make it better that this wasn't some random robbery or worse that he'd been purposely targeting Maze or herself?

"Besides, it won't help you. Nothing will." He stated matter-of-factly." He slowly stepped down from Lucifer's bedroom. "Because they're all gone. Before, they were all here and they protected you." He laughed a little. "But now it's my lucky day because you're all by yourself. No one to save you." He stopped. "And that will kill him."

"Kill who?" Chloe asked, trying to keep him talking, to figure out who he was or try to get herself out of this situation. She couldn't make it to the elevator. By the time she pushed the button, even if it was still on the penthouse floor, he would make it to her in mere seconds. "Who isn't around to save me? The police department, the other detective?"

"I'm not worried about them," the man said quietly. "I mean your other friends…Maze, Amenadiel," he paused. "Lucifer."

Chloe stiffened because he sounded so threatening. "Did you do something to them? Are Maze and Amenadiel hurt?"

The man shook his head, almost amused. "They're fine. I just used Maze as an excuse to get you here."

Chloe kicked herself for not waiting to hear from Maze first before showing up. Then it hit her. "You're one of them, aren't you?" she asked. "Escaped from Hell, body-jumped into someone recently deceased?"

The man, tilted his head. "I'm impressed. You're just as smart and pretty as I remember."

Chloe looked at him with surprise.

"Of course I was wearing a different body the last time I met you. See I was one of Lucifer's closest confidantes, a loyal servant for a millennia. Then he came to Earth and we lost our leader. Then he finally returned, but he wasn't the same. He wasn't the Master we had respected. He was weak," the man said, spitting out the last word. "His time on Earth made him unworthy. He threw us to the dungeons and was uncaring of his ruling." The man slowly paced as he told his story. "Then he pulled us from the prisons, but I knew he was not the same King as before, he never would be. Unless…" He stopped and pivoted towards her. "If I truly took away what tethered him to Earth, then he could return to the true leader of Hell that he had been. He was been destined to be."

Chloe's mind reeled. How she longed for the old days when she was ignorant to this whole other world. Of Hell and demons. "But Lucifer is in Hell and I'm here," she explained. "I haven't seen him in months. He hasn't seen me. He's moved on."

The demon paused and shook a finger. "Until you're gone, dead, he won't be able to move on. So I'm going to help him." He suddenly turned to her and she made a futile attempt to run to the elevator, pushing the button before he tackled her to the ground.

His heavy weight on her made her nearly panic because he was like the homicidal maniacs she'd encountered in her years on the police force. He wanted her dead, no matter what and he wasn't going to stop until he succeeded. But Chloe wasn't fully panicked because she knew how to fight and she knew what she was fighting for. For Trixie and Linda and Maze and Amenadiel and little Charlie. And Lucifer. He would never forgive himself if he knew one of the demons had escaped to kill her. So she fought. She fought for her life.

They rolled across the floor, her arms and fists hitting at him, although it felt like hitting stone. He we solid, strong, but she kept at him, hitting, kicking, struggling to get up to put some space between them. She managed to get to her knees before he kicked her in the back, knocking her forward. She was able to put her hands down to protect her face form the marble floor, but her forehead painfully made contact dazing her momentarily. In that time, he was dragging her up by her shoulder forcefully, causing a shooting pain as it threatened to be removed from the socket.

In the struggle, she heard a noise maybe from the balcony and the adrenaline coursed through her as she worried there might be another demon here. She might have a chance to fight off one, but not two. The demon was straddling her middle now, his large hands circling around her throat and slowly cutting off her oxygen. She started to see her vision close in and knew she was only seconds away from unconsciousness. And then it would be all over. She struggled to bring her hands up and fisted her hand digging it into the man's side then hitting him harder. He lost his concentration and in that moment, Chloe had them in reversed positions. "You should have just said if you wanted to be on top," the man said with a grin.

Chloe pulled her gun from her side and with no hesitation, fired twice into the man's chest. He flinched slightly, just enough for her to pull away from him. She crawled away getting as far as the coffee table before he brought her down hard onto the table. She felt the pain and the blood oozing down the side of her head, followed by the sharp blow as his fist caught her square in the jaw. She was sure she heard a pop as she fell back on her head. Miraculously, the gun was still in her hand and from her position laying on the floor, she concentrated through the blurred vision and blood running into her eye, aimed for his head and fired. Three bullets hit him in the face and he fell to the ground. Chloe struggled to get up and stood over his still body then took her foot, aimed the heeled boot and stamped down with all his strength over his eye, crushing down to the socket, just as she'd seen Eve do before. She slowly pulled her boot off and feel back onto the floor.

From his place on the balcony, Lucifer witnessed Chloe sitting on the floor of his living room, pulling her knees to her and letting out a shaky breath. He had nearly stepped in to help her, he had to, but every time his feet moved to her, she had the advantage. And he couldn't let her see him, not to just leave again. He had just needed to know that she was safe. And as she had proven many time before, she was strong and gutsy and heroic. She didn't need anyone to save her, not from a demon or a murderous suspect. Especially not him. He waited to see what she would do next. To make sure she was ok. She was so beaten up and bleeding it made his heart hurt, even though her back was to him.

Slowly, shakily she pulled out her cell phone, looking at the screen and he swore he heard her let out a trembling laugh. She put the phone to her ear. "Maze," she said quietly. "I need your help right now. I'm at the penthouse." For once it seemed Maze didn't ask questions or make some excuse at a delay, because a moment later Chloe said "thank you," and hung up. Maze had obviously heard the anguish and shock in the Detective's voice that Lucifer could hear. Chloe pushed herself away a few inches so a small distance was between her and the body. Then he heard the sound of a choking sob escaping her slim body, shaking her, followed by another one until she was a sobbing mess of grief and relief.

All he wanted to do was go to her, take her in his arms and never let her go. But he knew he couldn't. He just hoped this nightmare was over and Chloe could recover and move on from this. Move on from him for good and enjoy her life.

Lucifer stepped towards the balcony railing brushing his hand past his face, removing a fallen tear and turned towards the city. He had to get back to Hell. To his sister and the promise he'd made to return. Because his duty awaited him. And when he returned, there would be hell to pay.


	16. Chapter 16

The elevator bell pinged and Chloe stilled on the couch where she'd moved from the floor a minutes earlier. After she'd had a good cry, she felt some distance between her and the man/demon on the floor would be better for her state of mind. Maze rushed out of the elevator then stopped when she say the body on the floor. She looked at Chloe, taking in her bruised, bloodied face and dried tears.

"Did you have a party without inviting me Decker?" she asked, with slight amusement, but her face was dead serious.

Chloe sighed. "I would have been glad to have had you here Maze."

Maze walked over to the body and raised an eyebrow at Chloe's boot heel jammed into the body's eye socket. "Demon?"

"He knew me from before. He must have been one of the demons that was in L.A. last time."

Maze slowly nodded. "Probably Dromos. He's one determined son of a bitch. I'll give him that." She nodded in Chloe's direction. "Are you ok?"

Chloe took stock of her pounding head and blood-soaked shirt from her head wound that seemed to have clotted. "I think so. I don't think anything's permanently broken."

"You handled yourself well Chloe. I'm impressed." Maze said admiringly.

"I learned the shoe trick from Eve of all people."

Maze's expression was unreadable and she went quiet for a moment. "Do you need help getting rid of this trash?"

Chloe looked at her in shock. "This trash was a human being. I've never seen him before. We need to somehow let his family know that's he's dead."

Maze looked at Chloe with a 'really' expression. "That's a dumb idea because how are you going to explain this?" She gestured to the body on the floor. "And I know exactly who this is. He's a creep drug dealer that likes to hang around Lux and drum up business which normally I wouldn't have a problem with, but last night he tried to attack a woman in the alley. She only got away because one of the bouncers heard her screams. And that wasn't the first time. I guess someone else agreed that the world was better off with this miserable human gone."

Chloe considered and in her exhausted, weakened state, she couldn't argue with that logic. "Can you make him…disappear?"

"I've got this Decker." Maze said without hesitation. She reached down and pried out the shoe, tossing it in Chloe's direction.

Chloe deflected it with her hand and it fell to the floor. "Gross," she exclaimed.

"Well, you don't want it to stay with the body. That might be a little suspicious. Just bleach the heel and it'll be as good as new."

"I think I'll just burn them." Chloe said sadly. This was what her life was reduced to…burning evidence and asking for bodies to be disposed of? Where was her sense of honour to the badge? She reminded herself that the empty shell of a person on the floor had been inhabited by a murderous demon. Her career in law enforcement didn't really matter when stacked against that fact.

"You should get rid of your clothes too. I'll take care of them. Just grab some of my clothes."

Chloe shook her head. "No way. I may have just been almost killed by a demon, but I have some pride."

Maze tilted her head. "If you saw yourself in the mirror, you might change your mind. Just put on something of mine then you can go home and change into your own clothes." Maze looked at the body, hands on hips, sizing up the job. "Go clean yourself up and when you come out here again, this will all be gone."

Chloe slowly stood up, stopping for a moment to catch her balance.

"You sure you're ok Decker? You don't want to go to the hospital?"

It almost sounded like concern and Chloe was touched. "How would I explain all this?" She gestured to her face.

Maze agreed and Chloe continued walking to the bathroom. "Thanks Maze."

Maze didn't say anything, but nodded. She couldn't say anything because she was so pissed off. How did a demon slip past Lucifer's watchful eye? After Lucifer went back to Hell, they thought this was all over. Maze had let her guard down and hadn't been protecting the humans as she should. She wouldn't make that mistake again.

Lucifer glided to the gate and quickly folded in his wings. Azrael watched him, an obvious look of surprise on her face. "I wondered if you'd be back Lu. Or you'd just leave me standing here."

Lucifer felt a little slighted by her lack of faith in him. "I did promise that I would return Azrael."

"You returned quickly. Were my suspicions correct?" She asked, eager to learn what had happened.

Lucifer nodded once. "Yes, unfortunately they were."

"And the Detective? Is she…ok?" Azrael asked quietly.

"Yes, thankfully she is." Lucifer walked past his sister. "Although no thanks to me. Dromos jumped into a human body and I had no idea," he said angrily. "Apparently my mercy was taken for granted and he will pay for that."

"I am glad your human is ok Brother. I felt I owed you this much after everything…"

Lucifer turned to his sister. He was grateful to her, but he wasn't quite ready to let her know that. "Well, it was lovely of you to visit, but I believe it's time for me to return and you as well."

Azrael nodded. "Be safe Brother." She watched as he returned to the gates.

Lucifer walked up to them and willed them open. But nothing happened. He stopped with confusion and turned to his Sister. "That's never happened before," he said slightly amused. "I always thought of the gates were like an automatic door, just for me." He turned back to the gates. "Perhaps my time on Earth has confused the…process." Lucifer stepped up closer, but still nothing happened. Finally, he pushed on the gates with his mighty power, but nothing moved or opened.

"Are you fooling with me Lu?" Azrael asked skeptically.

Lucifer turned to her with a furrowed brow. "Believe me Sister, I'm hardly in the mood for practical jokes after what I just witnessed. I don't know how, but it seems I've been…locked out of Hell."

"Is there a key, did you maybe lock the door behind you and that's why you can't open it?"

Lucifer shook his head in annoyance. "It's not like a hotel swipe card. My mere presence should be enough to gain entrance." Lucifer tried again and again.

Finally, after numerous attempts, his sister put her hand on his arm. "Brother, who holds the power to open these gates?"

"Well, I do. Did" Lucifer corrected testily.

"And who else?" Azrael inquired.

Lucifer stopped and turned to his sister. "Father," he finally said.

Azrael backed away. "Perhaps this is a message from Father. If he's the only one who controls the gates, then he is obviously the one responsible for stopping you from entering."

Lucifer thought for a moment. "It's a punishment," he finally said with disgust. "Because I couldn't keep the demons controlled. He's trying to teach me a lesson." Lucifer turned away from his sister. "And to have one of my siblings here to witness my downfall yet again," he exclaimed with disgust.

"Brother," Azrael said quietly. "Perhaps it's not a punishment."

Lucifer spun around, eyes wide with anger. "What else could it be? It's His way of telling me I failed my duty yet again."

Azrael shook her head slowly. "It seems to me that it means you're not needed here right now. Maybe the fact that you returned and left Earth again, leaving behind all those you love that he understands you're not the same Lucifer that started the rebellion all those years ago." She looked to her brother and smiled a little. "You were dutiful big Brother."

Lucifer shook his head in confusion. None of this made sense. He turned back to the gates. "But what about…?"

Azrael shrugged, looking so much like his younger sibling again. "I don't think that's your problem anymore."

"So I'm just supposed to leave and hope Hell doesn't implode itself? What about the demons coming to Earth?"

His sister started walking away from the gates. "I think you have somewhere else to be now."

"But…" Lucifer was speechless for once. Did he walk away?

"I don't think it's under your control anymore." She stopped and rushed to him, embraced him quickly and released him before he even knew what was happening. "Be safe Lu." Then she spread her wings and disappeared.


	17. Chapter 17

Chloe had to admit that she felt a little better after ridding herself of her bloody clothes and washed herself with the hottest water she could manage in the huge, glass encased shower. The high-end rain showerhead hit the water in every spot, removing the dried blood from her temple and hair and seemed to massage her aching muscles. Everything hurt, but feeling clean made it not seem as bad.

After reluctantly removing herself from the shower, Chloe wrapped the towel around her and walked upstairs into Lucifer's spare bedroom where he kept most of his clothes. Maze's clothes were there too, but she couldn't bring herself to even look at them. It had been a hard enough day already and she didn't need to humiliate herself further. She ran her fingers along the long line of Lucifer's dress shirts and finally settled on a white one. Wrapping the fabric around her smaller frame, made her feel better…and worse. She took one of his silk robes and wrapped that around her as well then she walked back downstairs and poured herself a drink. If she was ever in need of a strong drink, this was this time.

Chloe took the drink back to the couch, thankful that Maze had been true to her word. Every trace of the struggle had been removed. Even the broken coffee table was gone. Maze had probably used the damaged wood to make a fire to burn the body. Chloe shook her head, feeling cold and wrapped the robe around her tighter, trying not to think about it too hard.

She took her cell phone that was left on the couch and called Dan. "I'm sorry, something came up Dan."

"Chloe, what's going on?" Dan asked. "You said you'd be here."

"Is Trixie with you? Is she ok?"

"She's fine. She's watching a movie right now."

Chloe closed her eyes, grateful that she was safe with Dan. "Look Dan, you know how you said I seemed better? I had a bit of a lapse and I need some time to myself ok?" Chloe choked over the words. She was cutting herself off to Trixie because neither of them could see her like this right now. There was just too much to explain and this was the only way to protect them all.

"Where are you Chloe? Are you in trouble?"

"No, Dan." Chloe tried to sound stronger than she was. "It was just a really tough day and it knocked me down." How true were those words? "Are you ok with taking Trixie a day early?"

"Ok." Dan finally answered. "I'd feel better if I knew you were ok."

"I am, I promise." Chloe took a deep breath. "I'm going to take some time off work and just get some rest. I'll call tomorrow ok?" Dan finally agreed. "Can I talk to Trixie?"

A moment later, her daughter's voice came through and Chloe closed her eyes. "Hey Monkey, how was your day?" She nodded, listening as Trixie talked about her day at school and something funny her friend said.

"Listen Trixie, I had something come up at work so you're going to stay with Dad tonight and I'll give you a call tomorrow ok?"

"Ok, I miss you Mommy."

"Me too Trixie babe. Let me talk to Dad for a minute."

"Thanks Dan. I'll call you tomorrow after school."

Chloe hung up before Dan could ask any more questions. She took a large swallow of the whiskey before setting it on the floor and calling into work. Thankfully the Lieutenant wasn't in and she left a message about an unexpected death and that she'd call in next week. At least that part she wasn't lying about.

Chloe tossed the phone onto the couch, grabbed the drink and curled up. It was hard to believe it was early evening. The sun would be setting soon and she could go to bed and put this miserable day behind her. Or at least begin to. She held the cool glass to her aching jaw then took another long swallow of the drink, feeling the burn slither down her throat before letting out a long sigh. Her eyes tiredly closed and she dozed off. Seemingly only moments later, she heard a noise and jolted awake in fear. It sounded like what she'd heard when she'd been fighting off the demon and had worried there was another one on the balcony, there to finish her off.

Heart pounding, she stood quickly, feeling momentary dizziness and disorientation. She thought she'd barely slept, but the skyline on the balcony was nearly dark, with just the horizon illuminated by the last light of the day. Chloe sat back on the couch, reaching for her gun, knowing it had been near her phone before she fell asleep. She felt in the darkness until finally her hand closed around the familiar, cold metal. She swiveled around quickly, standing and pointing the gun and stopped. Against the backdrop of the setting sun, was the silhouette of a tall figure.

She squinted in the dimness, trying to make out the shape. Was someone else here to bring her harm? Would this ever end? She took the safety off her gun. "Identify yourself!" The figure didn't move. "Now!" Chloe screamed.

"Detective," the figure finally said. And her heart nearly stopped at the sound of his voice.

"Lucifer?" she barely whispered. She backed away from the couch, still holding her gun to him, sure she must still be dreaming. She finally reached the front entrance and turned on the lights.

And he was there. Lucifer was there, walking to her. She put the gun down, setting it on the bar, sure she was hallucinating from her head injury, but a second later he was steps away from her. He stopped abruptly, taking in her bruised face and startled expression.

"Detective," he said slowly. "I swear it is truly me."

Chloe watched as he approached her finally wrapping his arms around her tightly. "Lucifer," she finally said, barely a whisper and returned his embrace fiercely. How was this even possible? If this was real, how was he here with her? She couldn't answer these questions, but she didn't care. She could feel him, his body pressed to hers, heat radiating off it and absorbing into her.

"Lucifer," she cried, holding onto him for dear life.

Lucifer finally pulled back, but his arm was still around her waist, not willing to severe their physical connection. He looked at her and felt tears in his eyes because even with her bruises and scrapes and tears, she was still beautiful. And she still wanted to see him, even after all this time.

He reached out, cupping her cheek in his palm, wiping away the tears that fell. Her skin was battered, but soft and the sensation was worth every horrible moment he'd endured until this moment. "Chloe," he said tenderly.

She put her hand over top of his and smiled, closing her eyes. "I've waited for this moment for so long," she said quietly.

Lucifer had too. He wouldn't admit it to himself over the time he'd been away. After he'd severed their ties, he had buried himself into everything else to make him forget this, but she'd been just below the surface and now that he was holding her and finally touching her again, it was indescribable. He was feeling sensations that he'd never experienced before. But they weren't altogether pleasant. In fact, it was quite disconcerting and uncomfortable. He was feeling pain and pressure throughout his body that seemed to be making him dizzy. And his skin felt like it was on fire.

"Detective?" he said, confused by his current state.

Chloe noticed the panic in his eyes and her smile faded. "What is it Lucifer?" Then his hand slid from her cheek and away from her hand and he fell to the ground at her feet.


	18. Chapter 18

Chloe looked at Lucifer, his tall frame crumpled on the floor with confusion. "What the…?" She dropped to her knees and took in his closed eyes, sweat visible on his forehead, chest rising and falling rapidly. How was this possible? Her mind raced. Lucifer was the Devil, he didn't get sick and he certainly didn't pass out. What had he endured that had put him in this state and how long would it be before he regained consciousness? Chloe put the back of her hand to his forehead and pulled her hand back, damp with perspiration. He was burning up.

Chloe scrambled for her cell phone on the couch and dialed, hands trembling. "You need to come back to the penthouse right away."

"I'm kinda preoccupied Decker," Maze said through gritted teeth.

Chloe so didn't want to know what she was doing right now to that body, the person Chloe had killed who was already dead.

"Are you in danger?" Maze asked quickly, misunderstanding Chloe's silence.

"No," Chloe closed her eyes, trying to catch her breath. "Lucifer's back," she finally said through tears, her voice strained.

"What do you mean back? Did you see him?"

Chloe looked over at Lucifer on the floor, in front of the bar. "He's at the penthouse."

Maze let out a shaky breath. "How is that possible? What's he doing there? What happened?"

"I don't know Maze," Chloe tried to cut her off. "Something's wrong, like he's sick."

Maze snorted. "He's the Devil, Decker. He doesn't get sick."

Chloe shook her head in frustration. "Well tell him that, oh wait, I can't because he's passed out on the floor," she said sarcastically. "He's burning up and unconscious."

"I don't…" Maze stopped, unable to admit she didn't understand. It scared Chloe that Maze didn't have some snappy retort.

"What do I do?" Chloe asked, feeling helpless. Her head was pounding.

"I need to finish up here and then I'll be right there."

"What do I do now?" Chloe snapped.

"What would you do if he was human?" Maze asked.

"He's not," Chloe shot back.

"I don't know what else to do right now. I'm calling Amenadiel and we'll be there. Just…try something."

Chloe hung up, tossing the phone on the couch. Maybe it wasn't anything serious. Maybe there was a strange transition that happened when Lucifer had left Hell and came back to Earth, like compression sickness. "Although why didn't it happen before?" Chloe asked out loud. He'd been there longer this time, maybe that made a difference.

Lucifer moved, almost flinching as though he was having a bad dream. She crawled over to him, cupping his sweltering cheek. "Lucifer…" she said tenderly. "You're going to be ok," She finally said, her voice sounding louder and stronger. "I won't let anything happen to you. Not after you finally came back." She touched his face again and it seemed even hotter than before. She had to do something before he burst into flames. She grabbed a blanket off the couch and laid it out on the floor beside him then tried to straighten out his body, trying to ignore that the silk robe was no longer covering what it was supposed to. Despite the situation, Chloe found herself blushing, knowing if he was conscious, Lucifer would absolutely be enjoying this.

She tried to roll him over onto the blanket, struggling because his body was a dead weight. After pushing, pulling and twisting his body, she finally got most of him on the blanket and then grabbed his hands and started to drag him, along with the blanket. The worst part was the few stairs, but after some pulling, she finally got him over the spot, hoping she wasn't hurting him further. She got him to the bathroom and after more struggling and sweating, got him into the large glassed-in shower. Droplets of water still clung to the stone from the shower she'd taken. She got him under the shower then turned on the water, full blast and ice cold. If that didn't awaken him, nothing would. He seemed to react to the first hit of water, but his eyes stayed closed. Chloe kneeled down next to him, the frigid water hitting her back, soaking her robe and shocking her but she held onto his hands, shaking. "Oh Lucifer, how you'd be enjoying this if you'd just wake up," she said with a tortured laugh, shivering.

Chloe waited, for how long she wasn't sure, until she finally shut the water off, hoping it was enough to bring his temperature down. She shook her head. He didn't have a fever or the flu. He was the Devil. She touched his face, not able to tell if it felt cooler. She looked down at his body, as beautiful as she remembered.

She managed to drag Lucifer to the bedroom and somehow got him up on the bed. She had removed the wet rob and wrapped a towel around his waist. Chloe knew Lucifer would be happy to show himself off, but Chloe couldn't concentrate with all that bare skin. She tossed off his robe she'd been wearing and rushed upstairs, putting on another one of his clean, dry dress shirts on and a pair of black, silk boxers.

She rushed back into his bedroom, worried that leaving him for even for a minute would result in him disappearing again. Or disappearing in another way. She took a shaky breath and sat on the side of the bed, holding his hand. She remembered when they'd both been on this bed, when he'd given her the bullet necklace for her birthday. She touched her collar where the necklace would have been. She'd put it away in the bottom of a drawer, wrapped in a velvet pouch, after he'd left. It had been too painful of a reminder of a better time when they'd actually been on the same page for once. When he'd surprised her and been honest with her, even if she had to pretend to be asleep to hear his honesty.

Chloe closed her eyes and laid down, nestling her body next to his. She didn't know what to do next, so she prayed. She must have dozed off because suddenly she heard the bell of the elevator. She jumped off the bed, worried it might be someone else to harm her and cursed that she left her gun on the bar. Thankfully it was Maze with Amenadiel.

"Thank God." Chloe let out a breath.

"I'm not sure if He deserves any thanks," Maze said shortly.

Amenadiel shook his head. "We don't know that yet."

"Where is he?" Maze asked, looking around the living room.

"I managed to get him in bed. I put him in the shower first and kept running cold water, hoping that would help, but his skin is still so hot."

"To think he missed that," Maze said with a slight grin, but her smile faded when she saw him on the bed. He was finally back, but this wasn't the way it was supposed to be. He looked sick, his skin pale and covered in sweat. He looked like a pitiful human, Maze thought. What is wrong with him?

Amenadiel took in his brother's nearly motionless form. "You did the right thing Chloe," he said giving her a reassuring smile that didn't reach his eyes.

"How do you know?" Maze asked. "How do any of us know?" She shook her head. "This is unchartered territory Amenadiel."

"I'm going to do some reading, try to find out what this means."

"How about your contacts?" Chloe asked hopefully.

Amenadiel shook his head. "No one can know he's in this state. It would make him vulnerable to his enemies. And it would shake the immortals to their very core, to know that the Devil could be inflicted with sickness."

"What can I do?" Chloe asked, eager to start whatever plan she was sure Amenadiel had. He was so smart, he always had ideas and theories.

Maze turned away from Lucifer and looked at Chloe. "You can leave."

"What?" Chloe stuttered in surprise.

"You make him vulnerable Decker," Maze said sternly. "Your being here could be making him sicker."

"You can't mean that." Chloe said, tears forming in her eyes, blurring her vision. "I need to be here for him. I need to do something."

Amenadiel walked over to Chloe, putting his hand on her shoulder. "I know it's hard Chloe, but you could be making him further vulnerable. We need to be cautious until we know what we're dealing with." Amenadiel took in her bruised state. "And you need to look after yourself too. You look terrible Chloe. You've been through so much today. Let us look after Lucifer."

Chloe wiped away tears, feeling the exhaustion throughout her body. She wanted so badly to stay, but what if they were right and she was making Lucifer worse? She couldn't take any chances that she wouldn't do everything to help him. She nodded. "I'll leave."

"We'll call you as soon as anything changes," Amenadiel said in his comforting tone. He squeezed her shoulder then turned to his brother. The confusion in Amenadiel's face, shook Chloe. She took one last look at Lucifer, hoping with everything that she'd see him again then reluctantly, and with a tattered heart, turned and left the penthouse.


	19. Chapter 19

Chloe stared into the darkness, pulling the covers up further to fend off the chill that was overtaking her. She couldn't seem to stop shivering, which given the events of the day, was hardly a surprise. She'd nearly died, had killed someone, had Maze dispose of said body and seen Lucifer again after all this time, only to see him stricken with something that she couldn't understand nor comprehend.

It was in the middle of the night, and with her head pounding and swirling from overthinking, she felt things were out of control. And certainly out of her control. She felt like she had six months earlier, but the difference was that Lucifer wasn't gone anymore, he was back. Although for how long, she didn't know. Was their brief reunion to be their only encounter? Was he going back to Hell? Was he going to die? The thought was preposterous considering up until a few hours ago, she'd know Lucifer to be immortal. Yes, she made him vulnerable, but they'd barely been in contact for a moment before he'd fallen ill. She couldn't have possibly caused this, could have she?

Her cell rang, a piercing sound in the silence and she bolted upright, answering it and ignoring the shooting pain along her temple. Don't let this be horrible news, she prayed. Months ago, she'd felt like she'd been saved from drowning, only now to be thrust under the icy, cold water again. She felt a small sense of relief when she saw it was Linda calling.

"Hi Linda, is everything ok? It's really late." Chloe said with concern.

"I would think I should be asking you the same thing Chloe. It sounds like you've had quite a day."

Chloe let out a choked half-sob, half laugh. "You could say that. You don't have any news?"

"No, there's been no word from Amenadiel or Maze. I'm guessing I didn't wake you?"

"How did you know? I've just been laying here, it all going over in my mind again and again."

"I also wanted to check on you, to make sure you're ok. It sounds like you were pretty banged up and the angels and demons don't really worry themselves with human conditions like concussions."

"My head is pounding," Chloe admitted. "I haven't been able to sleep so I guess that's a benefit."

"You need to sleep Chloe. Your body needs to heal and so do you. You've had a traumatic day."

Chloe let out a shaky breath, hardly hearing her friend's advice. "You should have seen him, Linda. Seeing him back, I thought it wasn't real. And then he was on the ground and burning up like his skin was going to ignite. He was so vulnerable, he seemed…human."

"He's in the best possible care of Maze and Amenadiel. They won't let him go, not after getting him back."

There was a silence and Chloe wondered if she'd dozed off for a moment.

"This must be so hard on you, to have to stay away."

"I used to think that making him vulnerable was this special bond that he didn't have with anyone else. I could never imagine that it would be what would keep us apart. Just add another thing onto the list," Chloe said, unable to keep the bitterness out of her voice.

"But think of all that you've gotten through to get to this point. This is just another insane challenge put in front of the two of you. Don't forgot that. You're both stronger because of it."

"I wish I shared your optimism Linda," Chloe said enviously.

"I can't imagine a scenario where Lucifer doesn't get through this. He will fight for all of us, and he will fight for you."

A tear escaped down Chloe's cheek and she let it drop onto her bed sheet.

"I want you to take some pain meds for your head, maybe with a shot of whiskey to help calm you down and get some sleep. If anything happens, you will be the first to know, I promise."

Chloe wiped another tear away, the exhaustion overtaking her. "Thanks Doctor," she said with a smile then hung up. She took the meds, poured a glass of red wine and settled back into bed. Ensuring her phone was right next to her, she took a few sips of the wine, the warmth running through her before the drowsiness hit. She pulled the covers over her and feel into a deep, but restless sleep.

Chloe stayed in bed the next morning, long after she normally would, even on a day off. Truthfully she was scared to move. Not only because her body was so damaged, but she worried if she even moved a muscle, it would somehow cause the phone to ring to deliver horrible news. She could even hear Amenadiel's choked voice saying they did everything they could, but Lucifer wasn't strong enough. Chloe took a deep breath and slowly sat up. She couldn't let fear take over her life even if the phone call would tear her into a million pieces.

She walked into the overly bright kitchen and started the coffee pot. She sat at the table and found herself staring into space, waiting for the coffee to finish. She couldn't go outside and be seen in the shape she was right now so she'd just have to stay inside. Maybe she could do some housecleaning or catch up on paperwork at home, but her throbbing head had other ideas. She was on her second cup of coffee when her phone rang. She jumped off the chair, nearly knocking it over. Chloe was surprised to see it was Dan.

"How are you doing Chloe?"

His concern for her wasn't surprising, but it still felt nice that he was checking up on her. "I'm doing ok. How's Trixie?"

"She's fine. I dropped her off at school on time."

"I wasn't insinuating anything. I just miss her."

There was a pause. "So I heard from the Lieutenant that you had a death in the family," he said quietly into the phone.

Chloe took a breath. How was she to explain this in a way that wasn't a complete lie? "I know it's horrible to lie, least of all to the boss, but I didn't want it getting around what really happened."

"Which was?" He sounded annoyed.

"I was mugged."

"Are you serious Chloe?"

"Yeah, unfortunately. I wasn't feeling great and went to the pharmacy to get some headache meds and it's not a store I usually go to and I parked further away. I was walking to my car and got jumped from behind. Of course I tried to fight him and he fought harder. I got really banged up, but he didn't get my purse and gave up."

She waited to see if she was convincing enough that Dan believed her.

"Why didn't you report it?"

"I'm a female cop Dan. The last thing I want is for everyone to know that some guy off the street got the jump on me and beat me up. I didn't see him because he came up behind me and shoved me so I hit my head."

"Did you go to the hospital?"

"No. I'll be ok." Even as she said the words, she felt nausea from all the talking and stress. In her mind, she saw the fight again and then Lucifer dropping to his knees in front of her.

"Do you need anything? Do you want me to stop by?" Dan's voice sounded funny, far away to her and she knew she needed to lie down.

"No, I'm good Dan. Thanks for checking on me. And you're ok with looking after Trixie? I don't want her to see me like this. It'll just worry her."

"Don't worry about anything. I'll make up some excuse and you can call her tonight."

"Thanks Dan." Chloe hung up abruptly then went into the bathroom and threw up. Once she was steady enough, she washed her face, drinking a few sips of water from the tap and crawled back into bed.


	20. Chapter 20

The sound of her ringing phone, pulled Chloe out of the deepest sleep. She opened her eyes in the dark and grabbed the phone from her dresser.

"Maze," Chloe said with panic. "What is it? Is he ok?"

There was a pause which frightened Chloe. "You should come."

There was no further explanation and Chloe took that to mean it would take too much time. She hung up and looked at the phone, feeling disorientated when she realized she'd been asleep for 48 hours. She quickly got out of bed, dressed in jeans and a tshirt, washed her face, trying to avoid the mirror and brushed her teeth.

She drove hurriedly in the night, the cool air from the open window helping to calm her nerves. What state would she find him in? Was he gone already? Chloe hit the lights in the cruiser and ran the next light.

She practically ran out of the elevator and stopped abruptly when she saw Maze and Amenadiel sitting on the couch, drinks in hand. They both stood up when she approached them.

Chloe let out a shaky breath. "Is he…?" She couldn't even finish the sentence.

Amenadiel shook his head. "No. But we don't know what else to do. We've run out of ideas and he's still no better. He seems to be getting worse." He stopped talking, the emotions too much to continue.

Maze looked at the ground. "He's heaving up this black liquid and it's like his skin is going to ignite, like he's burning up from the inside. He went into convulsions last night." She paused. "Truthfully, even though you make him vulnerable, he can't get worse than he already he is. We wanted you to be able to say goodbye." Maze looked at Chloe then, the tears visible in Maze's eyes.

Chloe stood, stunned and unable to say anything.

"I'm going to do more research and read through the books again," Amenadiel said quietly. "Linda was here to examine him and she's trying to come up with something that could treat him." But the hope had left his voice.

Chloe sniffed and then hugged Amenadiel and then Maze. It scared her that Maze let her. Then they both left with no instructions and the elevator door closed with finality leaving Chloe standing in Lucifer's living room. It barely registered that just a few days earlier, she'd killed a man in a demon's body just a foot away from where she stood.

Chloe slowly walked over to Lucifer's bedroom, scared of what she'd see. She stopped just before the steps and closed her eyes. She pictured herself sitting on the bed, wearing Lucifer's white shirt, holding the bullet necklace. She thought back to even earlier in their relationship, when she'd awoken in his bed after drinking too much and had been mortified to think she'd slept with Lucifer. Despite everything, Chloe smiled a little.

She forced herself to leave the good memories, finally climbing the few stairs in the darkness. She leaned over and found a lamp and turned it on. It seemed too bright. She squinted and took in Lucifer's form, unmoving on the bed. His was bare chested, sweat glistening off his pale body. He was covered with a white sheet from the waist down. His hair was damp and matted on his forehead. An occasional breath ran through his body and moved his chest slightly. He still looked beautiful to her, but he looked different somehow. Maybe because he was unmoving and quiet. Chloe was so used to Lucifer's hyperness and need to always being doing or saying something. It felt abnormal to see him just lying there, no smart ass comments.

At first Chloe was hesitant to get any closer, but then she thought of what Amenadiel and Maze had said. She couldn't make it any worse at this point. She took off her shoes and cautiously climbed into the bed on the side by the window. When she was next to him, she paused. No reaction or movement. She let out a breath and slowly lowered herself next to him, feeling the overly hot flesh of his arm next to hers. She looked at him and could feel her heart squeezing. This wasn't how their story was supposed to end. As unconventional as it was, she always hoped they'd have a chance. Now she felt that chance slipping away. It made her so sad and angry. She reached up and brushed the hair off his forehead.

She tried to speak, but had to clear her throat, the emotion thick in her voice. "Lucifer," she said quietly. She sniffed and then cleared her throat again. "Lucifer." Her voice was stronger. He would want her to be strong. "I'm here Lucifer. I'm not leaving. And you're not leaving me." She brushed his cheek with the back of her hand.

"You finally get your wish. You got me in your bed." Chloe laughed through tears. "After everything, I'm here. And now I'm waiting on you. So I just need you to come back to me." She watched for movement that didn't happen. "Do you think you can do that for me you beautiful Devil?" she asked softly.

Lucifer's body was so warm that it felt wrong to add to that heat, but she set her hand on his, that rested on his stomach. Then she talked to him. She told him everything that had happened while he'd been away. She talked to him as though he could hear her. And every hour, she got up and put a cold wash cloth on his forehead and wiped down his perspiring chest. A few hours later, she went in search of food, remembering it had been days since she'd last eaten. She found some cheese in the bar fridge and washed it down with whiskey. She watched him while she ate and drank, not wanting to leave his side, in case he needed her.

Surprisingly, Chloe fell asleep and woke up at dawn. She jolted awake, worried Lucifer would be gone, but he was still there. He still had life in him. Maybe he was trying to fight for everyone that had been waiting for him on Earth. In the later morning, she talked to Maze and Amenadiel. No change, she reported. They hadn't found anything useful that could help Lucifer that they hadn't already tried.

The next days blurred into the next. Maze came by and watched over Lucifer while Chloe had a shower. The bruises and cuts slowly changed from dark purple and red to yellow and a fainter pink.

Amenadiel came by with groceries and sat with Lucifer while Chloe ate. He bathed Lucifer while she talked to Trixie and Dan on the phone. Linda stayed as long as she could, talking and held Chloe when she cried. Chloe checked into work and bought more time. The mystery family member needed a bit more of her time because they didn't have any support so she was helping them clean up the house. Thankfully the Lieutenant was understanding.

Chloe woke up one morning and it took her a moment to remember where she was. Then she felt the luxurious, soft sheets of Lucifer's bed. She was surprised that she had pulled the sheet up. The heat from Lucifer's body was more than enough to keep everything warm in the vicinity. She sat up and put the back of her hand against Lucifer's forehead. Was she imagining that he felt a degree or two cooler? Chloe got up quickly and soaked a towel in the coldest water she could get from the tap. She wiped down his skin, not ever used to his beautiful form. She couldn't blame Eve for taking the damn apple.

Afterwards, Chloe laid next to Lucifer, hand on his chest and said a prayer to Lucifer's Father. "He's changed. You know he has. He's gone through so much, almost like a human – he's lost people and grieved. I hope you know how much he's tried. And like us humans, he's failed too. I pray you give him the chance to be with all of those that love him here."

Chloe sighed. She couldn't sleep anymore. For a single mother in a demanding career, it was a foreign concept, but she was sick of sleeping. So she kept talking. "I'm sure you're tired of hearing me talk so just wake up and tell me to shut up," she shook her head, "I might just listen to you for once."

That night before she went to bed, Chloe dressed in one of Lucifer's white dress shirts. She wiped down his skin that was nearly dry and was certain he wasn't nearly as hot as he had been. She snuggled in next to Lucifer and dreamed they were flying in the sky, Lucifer's wings white and majestic as he held her tightly in his arms. "Can we go higher?" She asked, her voice full of wonder and excitement.

Lucifer looked down at her. "Not this time Detective."

Chloe bolted awake. She held her breath and watched Lucifer in the dawn light. She might have missed it if she hadn't been leaning right next to his lips. In barely a whisper, she heard the word she had prayed for. "Detective."


	21. Chapter 21

_Well, this is it...the last two chapters. I hope you enjoy it. Thanks to everyone for reading, following and leaving comments! I can't wait to watch the first part of Season 5. Maybe I'll be inspired to write another one of these..._

Chloe held her breath for as long as she could, hoping that she hadn't imagined hearing that one word. Had she really heard it or was she just imagining things, hoping? Lucifer seemed to be improving – his skin was warm, but not hot and he wasn't sweating. Thankfully he was no longer vomiting up what Maze had described as tar. But he was still unconscious. Chloe placed her hand on Lucifer's bare chest. "Please say it again Lucifer." She rubbed her thumb along the defined chest muscle. "Say something," she quietly pleaded. She stayed, leaned on her elbow until her hand had gone numb. She let out a sigh. She was only hearing what she wanted to. "I haven't given up Lucifer." She leaned over and kissed him softly on the jaw. "I hope you haven't either."

She turned off the lamp and snuggled in next to Lucifer, her arm wrapped around his waist and fell asleep. The next time she awoke, it was dawn. She had forgotten to close the curtains and the early morning light streamed into the room. She squinted against the brightness and turned towards Lucifer. The sunlight bathed him and Chloe took a moment to appreciate him. She leaned on one elbow and as she had last night, and waited to hear one word or syllable to show that he was coming back.

Chloe ran her fingers along the stubble of Lucifer's chin. "I could get used to waking up to this." She said quietly.

"Detective." She heard it this time, she was sure. It was barely a whisper.

She sat up quickly taking Lucifer's hand in hers. "Lucifer, I'm here. I know you can hear me."

"Detective," he said again and like a prayer was answered, his eyelids flickered.

"Lucifer," Chloe whispered, unable to stop the smile on her face or the tears welling in her eyes.

Waking from a long sleep, Lucifer finally opened his eyes, taking a moment for his vision to adjust. "Why is it so bright?"

Chloe quickly leaned over and grabbed the remote control for the curtains and closed them. She flicked on the lamp closest to her and turned back to him. "Is that better?"

Lucifer didn't answer.

"You're back on Earth." Chloe said slowly. "Do you remember what happened?"

Lucifer blinked then turned towards her, finally looking at her. "Detective." He took in her messy hair and his dress shirt that she was wearing. "Please don't tell me I missed us having sex."

Chloe laughed and clasped Lucifer's hand. "I thought I'd wait till you were conscious." She wiped away a tear. "You were really sick. Do you remember?"

Lucifer shook his head slowly. It was foreign to see him look so confused. "The last thing I remember was coming in from the balcony and I saw you standing by the bar." Lucifer frowned. "So this is what a blackout feels like?"

Chloe shook her head. "It doesn't matter. You're awake now. You came back to me." She brushed his hair off his forehead.

Lucifer looked at Chloe and a small, tired smile stretched across his lips. "I will always come back to you Chloe." He reached up to touch her cheek, wiping away a tear.

Chloe leaned down and touched her lips gently to Lucifer's for a brief, but expressive kiss.

"I look forward to much more of this Detective," Lucifer said, the trademark glint in his eye finally making an appearance, "but it appears I will have to build up my stamina." His eyes blinked slowly with exhaustion.

"I hear it's quite legendary," Chloe said teasingly. She leaned over and placed a kiss on his forehead. "Sleep love. I'll be right here."

Lucifer's eyes closed and Chloe clasped his hand and was grateful when she felt a slight squeeze back before Lucifer relaxed and slipped into sleep.

The tears came freely now and Chloe let them fall. Part of her was fearful that Lucifer would slip away again, but he was so tough and she was next to him. She wouldn't let him go anywhere. She looked heavenward and whispered, "Thank you."

Later that evening, after Amenadiel, Maze and Linda had come by, all ecstatic with Lucifer's progress, it was just the two of them again. Lucifer had woken up numerous times throughout the day and had even sat up. When Amenidiel was there, Lucifer insisted he assist him with a shower. Chloe changed the sheets on the bed and cleaned up all the towels, glasses and anything else that had made its way into the bedroom.

"I can't wait to see you tomorrow Monkey," Chloe said over the phone, her heart clenching in her chest. It had been a week since she'd seen Trixie. They'd never gone this long without seeing one another, but Chloe's cuts and bruises were healing and with some good makeup, she could cover them up completely. "Sleep well Trixie. I'm counting the minutes."

"Love you Mom," Trixie said. "I can't wait to tell you about all the fun stuff I've been doing with Dad."

Chloe smiled, thankful that Dan had really stepped up. "I can't wait. Love you Trixie."

She'd already made a call to the Lieutenant, promising the family drama would be over soon. "If all goes well, I should be back on Monday." It was Friday, so that gave her two days to get back to some sort of normal life, spend time with Trixie and stay with Lucifer every moment she could. Maze and Amenadiel would take shifts to be with Lucifer until they were sure he was better.

Chloe got up from the side of the bed. She'd heard Amenadiel leave while she was on the phone so she went into the living room to look for Lucifer. She found him in a robe, sitting at his piano, a drink in his hand. She watched him as he took a small sip and set the glass down on the piano top. Then he looked down at the piano keys and ran his fingers over the keys, closing his eyes as he gently played a few notes. He must have sensed her presence, because she realized he had stopped playing and was watching her. "I was trying to figure out what I missed most." He looked longingly at the piano. "There isn't music in Hell." He tipped his head to the glass. "Or really good liquor." He looked back up to Chloe. She was wearing his dark blue dress shirt that skimmed her legs. "But I have to say Detective," he tilted his head a little, "that I missed you the most."

Chloe sighed and walked over to the piano. Lucifer took her hand and she sat down next to him on the piano bench. He took her hand and ran it over his cheek, savouring the touch. "If it's up to me, I will never leave you again."

Chloe leaned in and kissed Lucifer, softly at first until he turned into her, closing any space between them. His hands ran through her hair, his tongue skimming her bottom lip. Chloe felt her senses leave her, only feeling the sensations of his touch. "Lucifer," Chloe sighed as Lucifer's lips felt down her jawline and onto her neck.

Lucifer slowly pulled away. "I don't know if it's your intoxifying nature Detective or the fact that I seemingly almost died, but I'm feeling a little dizzy." He shook his head. "It's embarrassing to say, that I think I need to lie down."

Chloe looked at Lucifer with concern as she stood.

"Actually it might be that shirt you're wearing." Lucifer said with a smile.

Chloe raised an eyebrow, but was grateful that Lucifer seemed to be just fine. "I had to raid your closet. All my clothes are at home."

Lucifer reached over and touched the fabric, brushing her thigh with his fingertips. "Promise me you'll only wear my shirts and nothing more when you're with me here." His voice was slow, almost slurring.

Chloe shook her head. "I'll see what I can do."

Lucifer finished the rest of his drink and Chloe took his hand. "I dare say, I think you're a little drunk Lucifer."

Lucifer laughed quietly. "I don't get drunk, remember Detective."

He leaned his heavy frame on her and they slowly walked back to the bedroom. "Well you did almost die and you're immortal, so there's a first time for everything." Chloe reminded him. She got him settled into bed and then climbed in next to him. Her heart raced a little to think this was the first time they would be in bed together with Lucifer actually aware and conscious.

She settled in next to him then looked up at him. In the dimness, his eyes watched her. "Oh the things we would do if I could."

"Soon," Chloe said with a smile. She kissed him slowly. Even in his tired state, Lucifer deepened the kiss until they both broke away breathless. "Now rest," she scolded him. "You're not the only one who wants you back to normal." Chloe let out a breath. "I've been tending to your naked body for the better part of a week." She pointed a finger at him. "Sleep."

Lucifer touched her nose and smiled as his eyes closed. "I love you Detective," he said playfully. Then he closed his eyes and slept.

A week later things were almost back to normal. Lucifer's strength built back and he grew restless. "I don't need a babysitter," he reiterated as Maze or Amenadiel showed up. Finally they all let things settle and gave Lucifer some space.

Every moment that Chloe could be there, she was. She was back at work full time, but it was a Saturday morning. Trixie was over at a sleepover so Chloe had stayed over at Lucifer's.

Chloe awoke and slowly let her eyes adjust to the dimness in the bedroom. She was snuggled up next to Lucifer's chest and looked up at him. It was the first time he had awakened before her. "Morning," she smiled and leaned up to kiss him. In an instance, he had shifted her so she was on top of him, straddling his waist.

"Someone is feeling confident," Chloe said with an appreciative smile.

"Feeling hopeful Detective," Lucifer said with smile. He closed the space between them by sitting up and kissed her hard. His hands went into her hair then onto her thighs, brushing the tiny purple devil emoji tattoo on her hip and up further under his dress shirt she was wearing.

"Lucifer," Chloe pulled away, her head swimming. "Is this the right time? You're still on the mend and we haven't talked about anything since you've been back. Assuming you're back for good," Chloe said quickly.

Lucifer stopped and took her face in his hands. "I'm never leaving you Chloe, I promised you that. I don't know how, but I think I'm meant to be here…with you." He pulled her to him and kissed her neck. "And what is there to talk about Detective?" He murmured.

Chloe pulled away again. "We haven't even gone on a date yet." She exclaimed.

Lucifer sat back amused. "I don't know if you've noticed Detective, but I don't think our relationship is really defined by normal human standards. For one," he ticked off on his finger, "I'm the Devil so obviously not human. Two, we know everything about each other already. And three," he said a little exasperated, "before a thunderbolt from on high strikes down and splits the Earth in half, we are having sex," he said exasperated. He stopped and looked at her expectantly. "Are you with me Detective?"

Chloe shook her head. "To Hell with it," and lunged herself at Lucifer. He grinned under her kiss as his hands slid up her legs, under the shirt. She gasped and clutched at Lucifer's bare chest. "Show me you love me Lucifer," she sighed, then they were lost in each other.


	22. Chapter 22

**Epilogue - One Year Later**

Chloe sat in the driver's seat of the cruiser, her eyes scanning the darkened parkade. They were on the lookout for Jorge LaSalle. A murderous drug dealer that was supposed to be making a drop at the blue sedan they were parked across from.

Chloe looked over at Lucifer who had his eyes closed and head tilted back on the headrest. "Are you asleep Lucifer?" she asked annoyed. "If anyone should be tired, it should be me. You kept me up half the night."

Lucifer smiled smugly with closed eyes. "You were hardly complaining last night Detective."

Chloe blushed as she recalled the night. "I wasn't complaining..." There hadn't been a lot to complain about in Chloe's life in the past year. She and Lucifer were still going strong and she spent every night over that she could. Lucifer had even had a door installed on the bedroom and the spare room was done up so Trixie could stay over. Some nights they all made supper together and played Monopoly or watched a movie. Trixie still loved The Greatest Showman. Although she was older now and sometimes went out for movie nights or sleepovers with her friends. It was great to see Trixie so adjusted and growing up, but Chloe already missed their cuddles and story times of the past.

A few months into their relationship, Lucifer was finally able to call Trixie by her name most of the time. Against all the odds, Lucifer could be very patient and caring with her daughter. She loved to watch Lucifer teach Trixie to play the piano. "He's teaching me Rewrite the Stars Mom," she'd said excitedly.

Lucifer had looked a little embarrassed and took a drink of whiskey. "I'm hoping for something with a little more teeth, once we're done with this one."

Chloe had smiled, her heart swelling with love.

And there was plenty of love. They regularly saw Amenadiel, Linda and Charlie and went over for suppers or they came over to Lucifer's for brunch. Charlie was growing seemingly daily and Trixie always begged them to let her babysit.

Maze was still running Lux and popped in expectantly. She had caught Chloe and Lucifer in the penthouse more than once. Chloe was convinced it was not be accident because Maze had looked at Chloe with a new appreciation. "Way to go Decker," she'd said with the grin after the first time.

Maze and Trixie were closer than ever and spent a lot of time together. Chloe didn't always know what they were up to. Sometimes she was suspicious that Maze was teaching Trixie about fighting or knives and felt uneasy. But knowing what she did about demons that weren't present on Earth at the moment, but could be at any time, Chloe was a little thankful that Maze would teach Trixie how to look after herself.

Although the demons had stayed in hiding for now, it was still a mystery how Lucifer came to be back on Earth. If his Father expelled him from Hell to live on Earth, then they would take the time they had together.

As though reading her mind, Lucifer shifted in his seat. "I know I've said we don't really follow a typical human relationship, but I was curious…"

Chloe turned to Lucifer who was now fully awake. "About?"

Lucifer suddenly looked uncomfortable and Chloe found it adorable. "Well…we have been together for some time and I know there are certain customs."

"Like?" Chloe asked, enjoying that he was squirming a little. Lucifer didn't talk about the future a lot. Chloe thought about it from time to time. She wanted to enjoy the moment, but her mind sometimes slipped ahead and she wasn't sure what she envisioned for them. This conversation gave her hope.

"If we were to…" Lucifer cleared his throat nervously, "talk about the next step of our relationship, what would that entail?"

"Like what?" Chloe ask with curiosity.

"What would you think about…" Lucifer glanced at her, "getting married?"

Chloe smiled and closed her eyes. She sniffed a little then opened her eyes and turned to him. "I'd marry you Lucifer."

Lucifer's nervousness disappeared as his smile matched hers. "Is there someone that I need to ask permission to? Perhaps your mother?" Chloe shook her head quickly. "Trixie?"

Chloe nodded with a smile. "I think that would be a great idea." She reached over and took his hand. "I love you Lucifer."

"I love you too," he said with a squeeze of her hand.

"And I also wanted to bring something up." Chloe said with a smile. "About a next step that I wondered if you'd be ok with?"

Lucifer squinted at her. "What would that be Detective?"

"How about you move in with me and Trixie?"

Lucifer seemed to consider it, thinking of the last of his single, independent life disappearing. He thought of the loneliness while he was in Hell. And how he'd been grateful for every moment that he'd been back on Earth. He didn't know how it worked, but it felt for the first time that he had an understanding with his Father. Lucifer was to live out his years on Earth and if that was truly what his Father desired, then Lucifer wasn't going to miss any opportunity to be happy or loved.

He gave a small nod. "Maze will be tickled to have the penthouse." Maze ran Lux now and Lucifer was happy to be a silent partner who always had a place to go for a drink.

Chloe smiled and leaned over and kissed Lucifer then stopped. "Were you thinking a church?" she asked with confusion.

Lucifer thought a moment, then shook his head. "I was thinking that park that we go to for picnics with Trixie. And I'll ask Amenadiel to officiate."

Lucifer had obviously put some thought into this which made Chloe smile in the dark. She glanced at the clock. "It's an hour past this guy's drop. Let's call it a night and get the next shift to watch the car."

"Yes, finally," Lucifer said with enthusiasm. "I'm bored out of my mind. I was just about to suggest a little something to pass the time?" He gestured to the backseat.

Chloe shook her head as she sent a text to the next shift. "As romantic as that is, how about we go back to my place?"

"More room, I agree," Lucifer smiled.

Chloe started the car and turned to Lucifer. "Can we do that thing again?"

"Why what thing are you referring to Detective?" Lucifer asked, his eyes alight with curiosity.

Chloe blushed. "The thing with the wings?"

Lucifer shook his head with surprise. "The first time I did, I thought I'd given you a heart attack."

Chloe shrugged. "Well I was a little shocked and surprised." She smiled. "But in a good way."

Lucifer nodded with a satisfied smile. "Then we can absolutely can." Lucifer set his hand on Chloe's that was on the gear shift. She turned to him with a smile. "Let's go home Detective."


End file.
